The Aeon and the Star
by GoldenEagle
Summary: The sequel of Leviathan's Daughter... New figures emerge to carry out an ancient legend. Yet the hardest challenges they must face are those of the past...
1. Prologue

The Aeon and the Star  
GoldenEagle  
  
Prologue  
  
The moon shone down, its pale, white light dancing on the waves that thundered in on shore. Spray blasted up, into the night air, slowly soaking the blonde strands of the girl that stood before it. Hitomi Kanzakai stood there, motionless, her eyes on the dark water, her mind on a different world. She leaned forward on the wooden railing that jutted up from the pale sand. Sometimes she wondered... What if it was all a dream? Her friends had no memory of her disappearance, nor had any time passed since she had left and returned. Was it all just some seductive fairy tale? Was she somehow insane, making this adventure up to make up for some sort of emptiness in her life? No, she concluded. Though it had been five years and she was not the dreamful teenager of before, she knew well enough that it had to be true. For, who fell in love with a figment of imagination so fully as her? Surely Gaea had existed, and she had been there, and someday... Someday she would return.  
  
And, even if it was a dream, she felt better believing in it than not doing so. At one point she had thought there had been evidence of its truth. Van Fanel, the king, the one she had loved too late, would speak to her, in the back of her mind. She would feel what he felt throughout the day, just as she knew he would. And what had become of their link? What of their friendship, if not love? She was unsure. One day she had awoken, and she felt more distant from him. The next day, she could not feel as he felt. And the third day, she felt empty, no part of Van's spirit with her. That had happened two years ago, and was particularly hard on her, since she was going through the pain of departure at the same time. Leaving High School had been hard on her. Amano had long ago left to travel abroad. Though she still received postcards from him from time to time, she knew there was nothing left of the friendship they had once shared. And Yukari? Yukari was to go to college in America. Hitomi was still undecided about her future. After all, up to the time that her link had been severed with Van, she had always thought she would live her adult life on Gaea. And now she was nineteen years of age, with no deffinent future, and a dreamworld past.  
  
Hitomi sighed, her head lowered. She had long ago ran out of tears to cry for Gaea, and now she hid it within herself, a secret meant to be treasured, a pain she embraced fully. She looked up to the moon, her eyes wide with loneliness. "Why did you bring me back?" She whispered up to the stars. "I thought I knew what I needed... But it is not what I want." A stray cloud wandered across the room, its light dimming on the scene.  
  
"So, you feel it, too?" The voice broke her from her reverie and she spun around to be met with a shadowy figure. Hitomi frightened a bit. Her world had grown worst since her return. Rumors of wars surfaced. Increased and more brutal acts of violence were whispered about behind closed doors. But never in the open. Terror was a thing that was held at a distance.  
  
The cloud passed the moon and her light shone down again, revealing the figure before Hitomi only partially. A gasp echoed through her as the dim rays reflected off of a fiery head of hair and pale skin. "Persephone... Oh, God, Persephone!" Her voice was relieved and tears etched their way down her face. Tears she had, moments before, thought were long gone. She threw herself forward, her arms wrapping around the older woman's frame. A sob escaped her. Proof! Hard proof that Gaea was real, that it still existed. Hitomi's acquaintance, no, surely a friend, stood frozen for a moment before returning the gesture. "Where have you been?" She muttered.  
  
The woman smirked, premature wrinkles lining her mouth and eyes. "Around and about. Getting into the... routine... of things." She said the word routine with a bit of malice, as if it were the most distasteful and shameful thing that ever did exist. "Plus, I've had things to tend to."  
  
"Why didn't you contact me earlier? I thought you were still on Gaea! Why did you come back-" Her words froze in her throat as she realized the reason. Folken Fanel, this girl's lover, was dead. What more did she have to stay for?  
  
Persephone gave a knowing smile. "I should have come for you earlier, but I was still licking old wounds." She stepped further into the dim light and Hitomi could make out the military uniform she wore. She opened her mouth to ask about it when Persephone answered for her. "I joined the military. Can't fight worth shit." She glanced down at her scarred palms, the white tissue evidence of the wars she fought on Gaea. "Damn hands. But I do help with the intelligence units. I just can't seem to let go of everything that happened there." Persephone's eyes lay hidden in the dark shadows that her hair cast, but Hitomi could still tell she had glanced up to the stars, indicating the planet they both knew was there. "I can't let go of war." She muttered, stepping next to Hitomi, leaning on the wooden bar.   
  
"Why are you here, Persephone?" Hitomi asked seriously.  
  
The woman sighed. "I have something to ask of you, friend. Something important." Hitomi merely nodded in reply. "There are things I want you to care for when I die. Important 'things'-"  
  
"Die?! What are you talking about?" Hitomi's voice had risen a bit and she pulled away. Her happiness at seeing her old friend was tainted.  
  
A bitter chuckle was carried to her on the breeze. "My death comes soon, but in two different forms. I will either die in the war that is soon to come. Japan is preparing to join forces, talk of battle comes, and hands are short. My hands are no good for warfare, but they may send me out anyways. A World War is starting up, Hitomi. I warn you in advance. And the second? The second is that I am already dying. You wonder why you cannot feel Gaea and your friends which live upon her? She is dying and she is bringing me down with her. The link between our two worlds has been lost in her final breaths. Zaibach opened a gate, Hitomi, a gate which drains her of her power. Though Dornkirk and the Machine was destroyed, her life force still slips from her. The only reason I am still alive is for the sake of..." But she didn't finish the sentence. "There is much I need you to care for when I am gone, friend. I need you to be strong. If not for Gaea and earth, then for me."  
  
"I don't believe you." Hitomi whispered, fresh tears falling down her face. "You can't be dying."  
  
A small growl rippled through Persephone in annoyance. "Look into my eyes, Hitomi!" She suddenly burst out, turning on the girl. "Do you not see my death within them?!" The younger girl shrank back, the hopelessness of the inevitable playing in her friend's eyes. When they should have been blue, they were red with blood. So was the warning that Persephone was dying. So was the warning that Gaea was dying, as well.  
  
********************  
  
Hitomi sat in her apartment, the tea she had taken the effort to make going cold in her hands. A blank expression was on her face. Persephone spoke the truth when she had said she needed Hitomi to care for many things. And yet... How could she accept it? How could Hitomi just sit here and wait for everything she loved to die? Persephone, her friends, Van, Gaea... All would be gone in the end. An unnoticed tear fell into her tea and she shook her head, wiping the moisture away. No. She would be strong. For Persephone. For Gaea. Her gaze floated to her desk on the far side of the room. Without thinking she stood and walked over to it. Opening the drawer she hadn't opened in two years, it didn't take her long to find what she was looking for. A small, velvet pouch, its contents all to well known to her.  
  
She opened it and dropped the contents into her hand. The cool cards twinkled up at her, inviting her to ask her everything she needed to know. She stood there, staring down at them. With a final resolution she strode across the room and walked briskly onto her patio, which hovered high above the city below. With a small, yet broken cry, she threw them to the wind. A sob escaped her. She would never see Gaea again, never see her friends, never see Van... Her own thoughts forced her to sit down on a chair she kept outside, one which she would sit in to watch the sun rise or look up to where she knew her secret planet lay.  
  
This time, she lowered her head, pushing away all her hopes, and cried. The exhaustion of the day got to her and she fell asleep that way, her arms folded on the balcony's railing, her head falling on that. A wish pushed through her as she fell into a deep slumber and she sighed through her tears.  
  
'I wish... I wish everything is as it should be.'  
  
A star seemed to wink at the wish, and the fates looked down and considered it. With a final sigh, Destiny took hold of the child's wants and a power built. A power that could change worlds, and that did. The breeze fluttered over her and, seemingly out of nowhere, fluttered down two cards, falling gently into her lap. The Aeon and the Star. The Aeon, the card of rebirth through fire. The Star, the foreteller of good endings after trials.  
  



	2. Chapter One

The Aeon and the Star  
GoldenEagle  
  
Author's Notes: This is a really long installment. A lot has to happen and I had to introduce a new and complex charector. I'm not sure if I got her down right. I wanted her to be more quite and shy, but I need her to be the way she is, at least in this chapter, because of some stuff that will happen later. Anywho, read and review, please! Sorry if it's boring!  
  
Chapter One  
  
"Well, welcome, Lady Schezar. I'm so glad you could join us," the teacher glances at a clock, "thirty minutes late."  
  
The girl gave the teacher a nasty look while the others giggled. She hated these classes. They were privately tutored with her and four other children of noble birth. Most didn't like her in the class, except a small, mousy haired girl named Caroline. But it didn't matter to the others what she thought, for she was quiet and timid and kind hearted, looking at things deeper than politics and social policies.   
  
"Why, Lady Magnis, is that a new brooch you're wearing?" The girl's voice piped up gently and musically as she sat next to Caroline. Her hair was disheveled and her face was slightly red and had a glow to it, a few beads of sweat on her forehead. Her silver hair fell around her pale face, accenting her eyes, which no one could quite determine whether they were green or blue or a mix between the two. Her dress was slightly rumpled.  
  
The teacher merely huffed and turned back to the board, trying to inconspicuously handle and admire the silver, diamond brooch. "Now, Asturia's and Ispano's peace treaty was going sour and..."  
  
"You know, Evadne, if it weren't for your uncle being who he is, Lady Magnis would have torched you by now." Caroline muttered through slightly parted lips. All she received from her friend was a maniacal grin.  
  
One of the other girl's threw them both a "go to" look and the taller, silver haired girl replied by running her tongue over her teeth and then puckering a few times. The girl huffed and turned back, her curling hair bouncing around her head.  
  
"Evadne..." Caroline muttered disapprovingly.  
  
"What?" She asked, a little too loudly. The teacher glanced over her shoulder, but only sighed when she saw the two girls in a conversation, knowing that if she did anything then the damn Schezar would only cause more trouble.  
  
"Oh, Care, you should of seen the trouble I stirred this morning! I was galloping through the town square so fast, in my red hood, I swear they thought I was a Zaibach!" She smiled with glee when the class was interupted by a heavily armored guard.   
  
"Excuse me. I was sent to gather up the Lady Schezar for a conference." The voice was deep and yet slightly sarcastic. The wrinkles at the edge of the man's mouth told of his age and the many smiles he had given.  
  
"Ah, yes. Two minutes in class and you're off again, I see. Well, go along." Lady Magnis hissed out before turning back to the lesson at hand. Evadne stood quickly, gave a short and clumsy curtsey before practically bolting from the room. She closed the door quickly behind her before giving a loud sigh of relief.  
  
Her pale eyes snapped open when she heard the kind chuckling in front of her. The guard spoke, his raven hair, now stranded with a few grey strands, falling into his kind gaze. "Class that bad, Eva?"  
  
Her eyes got wide as she started. "Hell, yes! My gods, you would of thought I was Dornkirk himself by the way they looked at me! They're all stubborn brats, Gaddeth! Stuck up and rich and... ooh!" She had worked herself into a miniature fit and the older man smiled at her antics. He quieted her with a kiss to the forehead before throwing his arm around her casually and leading them away. "So... What's this about?"  
  
"Hm?" Gaddeth asked, obviously distracted by his own thoughts. Evadne gave him an annoyed look and he snapped into attention, taking his arm from her shoulders. "Ah, yes. Boss sent for you. Said he had to talk to you about some things..." His voice trailed off hesitantly.  
  
"And?"  
  
"Your mother's here." It was all that needed to be said and Evadne replied with a deep frown. Gaddeth noticed this and flinched momentarily at the troubled and hurt expression, but gathered himself as her look was replaced with her general, mocking tone.   
  
"Ah, yes, now I see why you're so distracted, dear friend. Seeing pretty blue eyes? Round breasts? You know, she is my mother. I could always arrange a... get together. Hm?" Her voice was mocking and warm and the soldier immediately forgot her earlier look. Instead his attitude was replaced with one of a slight panic.  
  
"I... I- That's absurd! Lady Evadne, surely you don't think-" He looked at her suddenly, his cheeks a slighter shade of red.  
  
She laughed out loud, a strong laugh, stronger than most noble girls, but still feminine. "You're blushing, Gaddeth! Admit it! Admit it!" She reached forward and tickled him right beneath the ribs and he couldn't help but squirm away, a grin etched his face.  
  
"No- I mean... How did you know?" He asked defensively, a slightly pouty look on his face. The girl laughed in reply.  
  
"You're so cute! It's obvious. Why don't you just court her?"  
  
Gaddeth sighed. "For one, it would be weird... With you and everything. We're friends, you and I, but... Me? Your dad? Ha! Plus, you know Allen. He'd kick my ass."  
  
Evadne frowned deeply. "You know, I wouldn't mind."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"If you were my dad. I mean, you basically are already. And it's not like mine's coming back anytime soon..." Her voice was pained at the resurfaced knowledge of a father unknown and unseen. "And Uncle Allen..." A growl of frustration uttered from her lips and she stopped dead in her tracks. Gaddeth turned back, surprised. "Allen's always protecting us! Well, I mean, me, since Mum's never around anymore... I don't understand! I feel like he's trying to break me, make me into something I don't want to be!" Her voice was uneven now and the soldier placed an arm around her shoulders in a fatherly embrace, urging her forward once more.  
  
"You know he loves you as his own daughter, Evadne. He can't help but be the way he is. After the Great War-"  
  
"The Great War?! Bah! That was twenty-one years ago, Gaddeth. Twenty-one! He has no excuse for being such a stick in the mud. That's what I say!" The older man chuckled.  
  
"Gods, I can't believe I'm that old. Twenty-one years..." They stopped in their places quickly as they realized they were at the gates of the Schezar estate. "I guess this is it. Good luck." He leaned forward and gave another kiss to her forehead before pulling away.  
  
"Luck, schmuck. I make my own luck." Muttered Evadne, still in a foul temper from her outburst. As Gaddeth started to walk away she called over her shoulder to him while two guards opened the golden gate for her. "Oh, and Gaddeth?" He turned and mentally cringed as he saw the mischievous look on her face. "I'll make sure to tell Mum that you were asking of her!" The soldier's face drained of color and he stepped forward, as if to grab her and tell her to not do so, but she was already bolting through the gate, her musical laughter drifting back to him.  
  
*****************  
  
Evadne trembled a bit, her bottom lip shaking as she tried not to cry, her hands clenched at her side. She stared at the floor as the older woman approached. "Evadne, please don't cry. You know I never intended to hurt you." The silver haired woman wrapped her arms around her daughter.  
  
Allen watched his sister and niece quietly, almost feeling as though he was intruding. But he felt the need to keep a close eye on both of them. Especially the younger of the two. He shrouded himself in thought, his blonde hair falling into his face. Despite his age of forty-two years, he still looked as young as ever. There were a few signs of past pains and fears on his face, but his eyes were still warm. His hair was still a golden and purely enviable. Though he was still a knight for Asturia, he was growing old, and others, mostly young pups, as he put it, were taking up his reputation as their own. After all, Allen Schezar was not to be the only "Heavenly Knight" to ever grace Gaea.  
  
Back to the scene at hand, Celena Schezar's arms were still around her daughter, but the younger girl was stiffly in place, her head to the side, failing at her attempt to hold back tears. Why should she accept this embrace? Her mother runs off for six years and then shows up again, wanting a relationship she had left behind long ago? Despite Evadne's anger and resentment, she still had the little girl who wanted a normal family in her, and, after a few seconds of her stiff response to the embrace, she returned the hug, clinging tightly to her mother and letting out one sob before taking control once more. She pulled back.  
  
"I... I missed you." Evadne's voice was small and she couldn't bring herself to meet her mother's eyes.  
  
"Evadne... You've grown into a beautiful young woman. And strong. I'm so proud of you." Celena smiled, tears in her eyes. Allen interupted the moment quickly, his voice cutting through the magic of the scene brutally.  
  
"Evadne, we need to talk." Celena threw a harsh glance back at her older brother before sighing in defeat and retreating to his side. The fifteen year old girl looked up, a bit of defiance in her eyes. Allen spoke before she could get the snide comment in that he knew she was preparing to make. "You have quite a reputation around here. You know as well as I do that not many of the eligible boys here are interested in you romantically. Your sixteenth birthday is approaching, and in the Schezar tradition, a groom is picked by then." Allen rushed on as he saw the widening of her eyes, the focusing of her gaze, and the clenching of her jaw. "We have found a suitable husband for you. That doesn't mean you need to marry right away, just that you need to promise your hand to him."  
  
Evadne's mouth was agape for a few seconds before she spoke, her voice high and painful in the two adult's ears. "You think... But-" She looked to her mother with a pained look. "This is the only reason you came back? To give my hand away to some stranger before you run off again?" More crystal tears fell from her eyes and she bit her lip, trying to control them.  
  
"Evadne, he's a great man. A relative of King Aston's. He's very handsome and kind and good hearted. He has great accommodations and a good estate. He can take care of you." Celena's voice was slightly pained but well controlled.  
  
"I don't want to be taken care of! I don't! I want to travel the world, see everything that's out there... The only places, other than Asturia, I've visited are Fanelia and Freid." Celena stepped forward as if to comfort her, but she pulled back, her face contorting in pain. "No! I'm not some horse you can send of to breed with 'noble' blood! I won't be chained up to someone's plans! I won't!" With that she turned and ran out, surprising the guards standing outside the large room as she burst out.  
  
The Lady Schezar turned to her brother, her eyes sharp, her hands on her hips. "She's right, Allen. After all, I didn't have to be arranged into a marriage!"  
  
The knight was angered by this, and a bitterness that had built up for a long while, ever since before the Great War, erupted. "Your circumstances were different. Yet, maybe if you had married you wouldn't have ended up with a bastard child."  
  
Allen's head snapped to the side as his younger, and smaller, sister hit him with a force and precision that was abnormal for a noble woman. Yes, she hit him with the accuracy she had held as the infamous Dilandau Albatou. Tears streamed down her face. "If only you knew... Knew what's really happening... But you wouldn't believe me if I told you." A bitter laugh left her lips and Allen's cold gaze softened, a guilt seeping into him.  
  
"I'm sorry, dear sister." He pulled her into an embrace, still reveling in the fact that she was his sister once more, not an apparition, not a madman. "I think... I think I'm a little afraid of her, that's all."  
  
Celena pulled back to look her brother in the eye, a confused look in her gaze. "Afraid of her? Why?"  
  
Allen looked down, his gaze focused on the floor. "You saw her. You saw how she's grown to resemble him. I thought that, when she was younger, that she would grow out of the resemblances. But she has only grown to appear more like him."  
  
The woman's gaze hardened as she understood what he was saying. "Looks are deceiving, dear brother. Surely you know that."  
  
The knight looked back to his sister with a grim expression. "It is more than her looks, Celena. She acts like him, she laughs like him, and her obsession with Zaibach's past is unnerving."  
  
A protective look flashed across Celena's face and she squared her shoulders, ready to stand tall for her only child. "Evadne may be my mistake to some. Even my sin to others. But she will never be my past. She will never be Dilandau Albatou."  
  
Author's Notes: If you haven't caught this, it's been twenty-one years since Hitomi left earth, which would make her thirty-five, Van thirty-six, Allen forty-two (yipes! He sounds old), and so on. It's also been sixteen years since the prologue. Thought ya'll might want to get that straight from the first.  
  



	3. Chapter Two

The Aeon and the Star  
GoldenEagle  
  
Author's Notes: Ah, it's been a while since I've written! Writer's block? Plain personal stress? All of the above, I imagine, but I'm also brainstorming up a book. Inspired by a dream I had. I guess it's gonna be some kinda horror, or something of the sort, if I can even WRITE horror. But it's original, and if I can get if off the ground, I may try to get it published. *sigh* but for now, here's the next part of The Aeon and the Star. Kinda weird how I wrote it, but I guess that's because I felt like doing it that way. Sorry if it's confusing!  
  
Chapter Two  
  
*Fire. Glass. Blood. Crimson grass, crumpled metal... What's going on?*  
  
Tears had clung to the girl's cheeks. She brushed them away angrily, only to hiss out in pain as her soft hands brushed harshly against the newly received cuts and bruises. She threw a murderous glance back at the door that had just been slammed in her face. *Damn him. Damn the fucker.* And still she seethed with pain at his rejection. How could she have imagined love with someone so shallow? Had she been a fool, despite herself? The biggest bump in their relationship had risen up, and now he wished to try no longer to get things right. And so she had stood, her ebony black hair falling in long strands down to the small of her back. Deep, jungle green eyes stared out from the dark head of hair, one of those eyes swelling. He had beat her... The damn boy had beat her! She bubbled with a hellish rage, a murderous, dangerous rage. She could remember how enraged she had been. How she had wanted, no, *planned* to kill him. He had left her when she needed him the most. She remembered stepping into the car, swerving out of the driveway. Remembered turning the radio up, screaming voices and loud guitars swallowing her whole, matching her feelings-  
  
*Mom! Help me! I can't move. I can't breath without pain! What's wrong with me?!*  
  
Going home. Mom had moved all the way from Japan to Texas, Houston, to be more precise. The girl remembered very little of Japan, very little indeed. All her memories of that place were broken and distorted by a toddler's sense of reality. She had looked up, looked up to the darkening sky, frowning. What time was it now? Already six fifteen? She had tensed her jaw. Curfew began at seven for the Texas coast, and violators were punished harshly. Not just arrested, charged for a misdemeanor, but sometimes beaten... Sometimes raped. The police force had been replaced by soldiers, as had everyone else, it seemed. World War III had come to a close only a few years back, and a fourth seemed on its way. She pushed the thoughts from her mind. She was only fifteen, mind you, and sometimes the American government resorted to call on young, strong teens, whether male or female. She had avoided one summoning already, but she could not avoid a second. The sun sunk below the horizon and she cursed. A light, slightly sea tainted breeze blew harshly against her as her red convertible sped on, well past eighty miles an hour. She cursed again as a slight fog began to roll in on the empty road around her. Everyone knew to be inside by seven. Before seven. And she was still an hour away. The fog (or was it smog?) thickened around her and she growled out in frustration, her annoyed plea not heard over the radio. It only enraged her when she found she couldn't see too far, couldn't see past the veil of grey substance. She put her foot on the gas, bringing the car up, past what the dial could read. *Damn this!* Faster, faster... Something in the road, flickering, like an apparition. A cat, huge cat- No, no, a man, hunched over, standing, looking at her oncoming form. No, he was a cat, he was a man, snow white, flickering, apparition... An Acid trip? Gods, she had only taken the damn drug a few times- No, he was still there, in the road, staring at her, tale twitching, human hands clutched. This was no dream! She was going to hit him! Her eyes grew wide, the car swerved, the ghost flickered out and-  
  
*Cold. It's so cold. Mother! Mother, save me, I'm not supposed to bleed like this! Why? Why?! Surely, I'm not so... human?*  
  
She had hit the concrete divider, her scream actually piercing over the radio, metal pushing in. She had hit at over a hundred miles an hour, no seat belt, and the world around her had shattered. Shattered to a million pieces. There had been spinning, like the tilt-o-whirl she had once ridden on and thrown up after. And then she had flown. Flown for a long while, through glass at first, the sharp strands digging into her arms. There was that feeling, as she was falling, of utter, hopeless horror, the kind you get when your snow skiing and you can't stop yourself from going over the edge of the trail, or when you have a baby in your arms and you trip forward. And then she had hit, and the reality had surrounded her, and she had let out a loose, broken cry. Her head was on its side, her arms twisted around her, along with her legs, as the radio continued to play, even as the twisted metal lay next to her. Even worse than the fall was the realization that no one would find her until dawn, no one except maybe the curfew patrol teams, and who knew what they'd do to her? Then there had been light, bright and clean and blinding. Had someone found her? She didn't have the energy to care. Were those ambulance lights flashing? No. There was no siren. And there was only the blue and white tint of the light. Oh, gods, she was dying. She could feel herself being pulled from her body, from the ground, into the air. And just as quickly as it had happened, she could feel herself being laid down gently, on soft, tall grass. The air smelled different, much more clean. No smog, only wood and flowers. She opened her eyes, her head now facing up, her broken and torn body sprawled on its back. Darkness, darkness, and light... Stars, the moons, the... The *moons*?  
  
*The moons, staring down at me... Momma? Momma! Where... Where am I?!*  
  
*************  
  
A woman in her mid-thirties paced nervously, intertwining her hands. Where was the damn girl? Curfew had come and gone a few hours ago, and her daughter had not returned in. Dark, ruby hair, cut short and molded around her ears, flows ever so slightly as the pacing increases speed. She listened to the thuds of her footsteps on the carpet. Her heart pounded with worry, filling her ears with the internal sound-  
  
No, no, it wasn't her heart any longer. The door frame seemed to rattle as it was shaken again, two heavy poundings reaching inside. The woman paused, her dark eyes filling with distress. That was not the sound of her daughter. Not the sound of her confident and characteristic knock. She hesitated before stepping forward, her hands brushing lightly against the brass knob a moment and then clamping down on it, turning it. She opened the door swiftly, drawing off her reserve of hidden strength just to do so. A tall form filled her doorway, another wide one behind it. They wore the crisp, red uniforms of the police and military squads. The man looked back at her gravely, his sharp features swimming and blurring before her eyes as she realized something was terribly wrong. Something was horribly askew.   
  
"You are the mother of Cassiel Yunami, am I correct?" She could only nod, his deep baritone voice rustling her senses, destroying her line of thought. "There's been an accident-"  
  
"What do you mean, an accident?" She had suddenly found her voice, loud and panicked and strangely pathetic compared to its usual, strong self.  
  
"Miss Yunami, try to relax. We found your daughter's car. It had been badly damaged. But we are yet to find where she is at. Do you have any idea where she may be? Ma'am? Miss Yunami?" She didn't reply, her face going pale, going blank. The man in the doorway sighed and threw a cautious glance back at the man behind him. "Yukari Yunami, if you'd just follow us. We'd like to ask you a few questions about your daughter." Yukari could do nothing but nod and follow the man outside, into the dimming twilight.  
  
**************  
  
"Gods, Nod, did you *see* that? It was like a bold of lightening or something! Quit giving me that look. We'll be back by the time they wake- Oh, gods, Nod, oh gods, what happened? What *happened*?!"  
  
*Voices. Voices, I hear voices.*  
  
"What happened to her?" A feminine voice, strangely liquid and lithe, almost inhuman in its grace of syllable and tone.  
  
"I don't care, Tanara, just leave the damn thing there. We don't need anymore of *their* kind among our party." A voice growled, literally *growled*, out.  
  
A pause insued, a disapproving pause. "Surely, Nodin... Surely your heart has not grown so cold and hard so soon? She will die without our help."  
  
Another growl, more like a hiss. "My heart is not cold to most, but it has grown cold to them."  
  
A sigh, wistful, strangely beautiful within itself. "You hate them because they have made us slaves. But I do not hate them. At least, not this one. Please, Nodin, if not for the child, then for me?" A pause, as if the plea had gone on deaf ears, and then a huff of resignation.  
  
"All right, Tanara, all right. But I'm not cleaning up after the filthy thing."  
  
Author's Note: It was shorter than most of mine. How does everyone get the itallics and stuff? I download as text documents, but I can never figure out how to do itallics, whether through the program or through html. I could have really used it in this chapter, since all the *stuff* was supposed to be italicized... Ah, well, I could really use some help, though! Read and review! Thankees!  



	4. Chapter Three

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:** Hola! I've realized that most people might not be reading this story, since it has kinda gone off into a strange, almost non-related Leviathan's Daughter streak, but I promise it will show it's true colors in the end. This is more a story that is related to LD because of the legend behind it... Well, you'll see. Just keep reading and try to enjoy. Please?! And if you do enjoy it, review for me! Oh, another thing. With my Playing God story... I'm kinda on a dead streak with it and I don't know when I'll be writing on it. Not at all, actually. I have the ending planned out, but besides that, it's basically unplanned. Anywho, on with the story! 

**Chapter Three**

A light breeze pushed across the Asturian city, carrying with it the smells of livestock, currently cooking suppers, and the clear crystal ocean. This soft wind floated up over the city, pushing into the courtyards of an expensive estate, and then fluttering through a girl's white locks. Evadne stood, her gaze serene, her heart wondering, her face pale beneath the moonlight. She wasn't about to let the night pass without a conclusion to her troubled thoughts, and so she stood, leaning out over the balcony, her silver hair no longer up, cascading in waves down to her waist. She sighed, regaining her thoughts for a moment. So, they were trying to marry her off? She lowered her head, her light, white nightgown curling around her gently. She couldn't allow them to do this. Whether her uncle or mother, she wouldn't allow it. Still... Others said she should be calming down by now. Becoming more of a woman... Wasn't she a woman? Just because she wanted adventure rather than schooling, wanted intelligence rather than beauty, wanted the world instead of marriage... Did that make her any less of a woman? 

_Of course it does, you moron. You're more of a troublesome boy than a young lady... Perhaps it's time to grow up a little bit-_

"Evadne?" The voice was timid and warm, a deep, sensual tone. 

She turned slowly, if not regretfully, to meet her mother's eyes. They were blue and warm and she immediately felt the downfall of her anger entrap her. How could she not love her mother? How could she not love her, obey her? "Mum..." Her own voice was small and seemingly insignificant, not the usual, boisterous tone of past. 

"Come inside, Evadne, and let's talk." Celena said warmly, a comforting smile crossing her features, creasing the corners of her eyes in a wonderful gesture. 

"Talk about what?" Evadne had regained her previous suspicious and prideful air, but her mother took it in with the widening of her smile. 

"First off, you can tell me what Gaddeth has said of me." Celena said, averting her gaze for a moment. 

"Gaddeth?" Evadne first asked, confused, before a mischievous smile rippled across her face. An innocent tone replaced her momentary bewildered one. "Oh, Gaddeth! What about him?" 

She was pleased to see as her mother's cheeks reddened. "Just come inside." She said, a small, embarrassed, and playful grin on her face. She turned and started to step through the doors into her daughter's room. Evadne gave one glance up to the moons before turning on her heel and taking a step forward- 

_Come to me... Come to me now..._

Evadne's feet froze in place, her head suddenly snapping to the side, towards the dark shadows of the night. The words echoed in her mind, echoed with a strange metallic tone that scared her. "Evadne, what's wrong?" Her mother's voice seemed distant as the silver haired teen focused her gaze on the horizon. The quiet of the night was only broken by the sound of a horde of crows cawing in the distance- 

Crows? Crows were not common to mount in the night. After all, they were scavenger birds, creatures which would eat the remains of small animals crushed by the carts of wagons passing through. If they were in flight, and such a commotion, at night, didn't it mean- 

_Come, child. Come into our hands. Come..._

Evadne took a step back, her face rippling up into a look of annoyance and confusion, her eyes clenched shut, her jaw tight. "Evadne, what's going on?" Her mother's voice was more frightened now as she recognized her daughter's look of one she had worn in the past, a look that she never wanted to wear again. She would have answered if she had known what to say. She had almost grasped at something, and then that voice, pervading into the depths of her mind, had stolen the thought from her. She had been thinking crows... Scavenger birds... Her eyes shot open, her gaze wide in sudden fear and realization. Crows rarely flew at night unless there was a great amount of death, or if an army was on the rise. Had she not been taught that as a warning? Were not all children following the Great War taught the same? 

"Mother, the crows-" 

And the world fell beneath her, a mass of flame and darkness and spells. 

****************** 

"Quit complaining, Nodin." The figure hissed in annoyance as her hands worked over a bloodied figure before her, the dying light of a fire lit long ago helping her see. 

"Do I have to watch you put the girl back together? What good is it that I do it?" He muttered under his breath, his eyes averted from the gruesome sight of the mangled body below him. He stole a glance at the girl below him, as a child might peek through their hands at an appalling horror movie, before he averted his gaze again. 

"I said quit complaining! I need your strength to help me with the spells!" She hissed, a loud snapping noise emitting from beneath her palms as she pushed two pieces of bone back into one place. 

"It's almost dawn, Tanara. You've been caring for the child for at least eight hours. Don't you think we should just let her be by now?" 

He was rewarded by the flash of two very unhappy, golden eyes. "I've almost got the manual parts of her finished, I just have a few more things-" A jerk of her hands, another crack... "There." She murmured. "Now comes the hard part. She's hurt a lot on the inside, Nodin. I need to fix those parts, but I can't with my hands. She bleeds on the inside, I feel it, and she bleeds on the outside as well. Give me your hand." A long pause insued as she held out her hand, not looking up. After that time lapsed, those same golden eyes snapped up. "Nodin!" 

A sigh escaped her partner before he placed his large palm into her hand. Almost immediately he felt a great amount of energy drain from him. Another sigh left his lips. A tired, weary sigh. Words, unidentifiable words, left Tanara's mouth. A chant, half closed eyes, the world seemed to twist beneath her fingers, the black haired girl groaning as the power filled her, closed her wounds... 

"Done." Tanara murmured, her body shaking from effort. 

Nodin gave her a lazy, tired grin. "Not only are you a sorceress, but a Zaibach as well. And to top that all off, a Leon. I'd have to say, you may be the most unlucky creature on Gaea, but a damn good one, at that." 

Tanara gave him a disapproving, almost motherly look, not enjoying his words, but not letting them bother her, either. "So, I'm a sorceress. Not the only of my kind, and I'm damn good at it, too. Just because people fear what I can do doesn't make me a monster. Same thing with me being a Zaibach. It annoys the hell out of me that people still think of Zaibach as the enemy. It's been twenty-one years since the war, my country has made peace. We are no longer a warring country. First they conquered us, then they tore us apart, and still they reject us. Zaibach has a lot to offer to the nations of Gaea." There was a short pause as she calmed herself of her nationalism. "And about the whole Leon thing... You're not exactly human yourself, Nodin!" She replied with a happy smirk. 

Nodin returned her smile, the horizon a dark purple behind him. A small, sweet breeze ruffled his snow white bangs, which fell into his pale, almost colorless eyes. They were a light, barely-there blue. Silken white fur covered his body, no signs of marking anywhere. His gaze suddenly narrowed on his companion, his ears going forward, his hands flexing, momentarily releasing a row of sharp claws. His tail, short haired and lithe until its tip, which was formed into a fluff (a lot like the mythical, Mystic Moon unicorn), twitched in agitation. "What is it, Tanara?" 

She met his gaze hesitantly, knowing he would not like what she was about to say. Her wheat colored hair ruffled around her back, falling into her face ever so softly in strands. Those same golden eyes stared back at him, her face covered in copper, soft hair. She gave a small, full-lipped smile before trying to speak to him, her own lion-like tail twitching nervously. "The girl's still not well. She needs... She needs blood. Your blood." She winced at the hateful look that crossed his face, her small, round ears going back momentarily. 

"What do you mean, _my_ blood?" He hissed out, his eyes narrowing. 

She sighed tiredly. "There are different types of blood, Nodin." She said slowly, as if explaining to a small child. "I do not have her blood type, but you do. You must trust me-" 

"First off," he interrupted, bristling, "I'm not even human. I'm also a defect. A Colorless." His voice had lowered a bit. "How am I to have her blood? Secondly, I thought you said you _fixed_ her." 

"I could not give back the blood she needs, so please understand!" She said desperately. "Plus, the blood between our veins is all basically the same. I know these things by instinct. I feel them. Please, Nodin, she will die!" 

There was a long, tense pause before Nodin rolled his eyes. "All right, all right." A hesitation. "Is it going to hurt?" 

"Yes." Tanara replied bluntly while standing, making sure to be quiet among the camp. There were several men asleep on the ground, all rather dirty and savage looking. Many held bottles of wine and whiskey in their hands, snoring and mumbling off the liquor. She went to the back of one of the wagons, pulled out a large, machine like contraption, before tiptoeing back to him. She then pulled out a dagger she kept at her waist and made work on the thing. She opened it up and dug around a bit before pulling out a long tube and cutting it from the machine. She threw the chunk of metal aside before cutting the hollow and plastic tube sharply at the ends. 

"What exactly is that?" Nodin asked nervously. 

"The machine or the tube?" 

"Both." He took a deep gulp and winced as he watched her dig one of the sharp ends of the tube into the arm of the unconscious girl below the two. 

"The machine, I am unsure of. Probably some junk the Masters picked up along the way." She tried to ignore the hatred that filtered across Nodin's face at mention of the Masters before continuing. "And this is for the girl." She said hastily. Her small hand shot out and gripped Nodin's fiercely. He had little time to react before he felt her jamb the thing into his arm with a grace he did not understand. 

"Mow!" He mewed out. "What the hell are you doing?!" 

"Quiet!" Tanara hissed. "You'll wake the Masters!" Nodin merely closed his eyes harshly and clenched his jaw. Tanara loosened her grip on his arm and turned it so he could look at it better. "Look, Nodin. Look and see why the Zaibach sorcerers were once said to be the miracle workers of Gaea." 

The cat-boy reluctantly opened his eyes only to have them snap into wide saucers. He closed them again, the tube too dark for him to see his blood flowing into it and filling the girl. The _human_ girl, to say the least! "You're such a wimp!" Tanara laughed out loud at him. He made no reply, feeling suddenly nauseous, and there was nothing really said for the next few minutes. 

Nodin found himself growing strangely tired, as if he had been drugged. His eyelids drooped and Tanara sat by his side, trying to keep awake herself. He perked up when he heard the moans of the men around him and groaned. "We're in deep shit now-" 

"What the hell are you two doing outside your cage?! I told you two to quit picking the lock or I'd-" The man was tall, his arms fairly well muscled, but his stomach pushed out in a bear belly. 

"Quick, Nodin!" It was all Tanara could say before the man stumbled forward and backhanded her. She let her head roll to the side with the blow, avoiding a strained neck. A growl rippled through the white cat behind her, his ears going back as he bared his teeth and removed the tube from his arm and the girl's. 

The man stumbled back at the growl, slightly taken back. His frightened look was replaced by a smirk as he saw the cat-boy try to rise, only to fall to his knees painfully, as if he had been drugged. But as the creature's hands met the soft earth, the man's eyes fell on the girl. "What do we have here?" He murmured, glancing over the slightly stirring girl, who's color had improved since the night before. "Well, well, she's quite a tart, ain't she? Boys, come look what I've found!" 

Tanara surprised Nodin by taking up a protective stance in front of the girl, her fur bristling, her eyes narrowing. The first man to awake stared at her in pure annoyance before nodding back to the wagon. "Get back in your cage. Take the girl with you and watch after her. We might be able to make a bit of money off of her unusual beauty, hm?" There was one, long tense second before the lioness relaxed, turning and wrapping her arms around the girl and trying to lift her. After a few moments of struggle, Nodin joined in. He couldn't have lifted her dead weight by himself in his weak state, but with her help, he did so with ease. They moved forward, avoiding the eyes of their superiors before climbing into the back of the wagon. A large cage stood, its barred door wide open. The two cat-people had escaped this way the night before, not intending on staying out of their cage the entire night. They slowly dragged the new girl in with them before the man, who had been following behind them, shut them in. The back of the wagon was soon shrouded in complete darkness as its opening was closed. Nodin growled out in rage even before his eyes adjusted to the darkness. 

"Damn that man! Just wait, Tanara, just wait. You will see. I'll get back at him, rip him open-" 

"Please, don't, Nodin. Not such murderess thoughts. Not right now." She whimpered out, an evident fear of her friend shining through her entire body. 

He calmed himself before looking around. His eyes caught on what he was looking for, beyond the cage they were in, chained against the far wall. Tanara saw what he was looking at through her nocturnal eyes and sighed. "You should go, Nod. You have no reason to stay-" 

"Of course I do!" He suddenly said, his eyes laying on her immediately. "I'm here for you and your sister." He said diligently. Tanara lowered her head a moment before smiling gratefully and him and then looking back up at her sister, unconscious, against the far wall. She was chained there with a lock that even she could not pick. 

"She's not going to wake up, is she?" Murmured the lioness, her eyes darkening. "They hit her too many times in the head. Now she won't ever wake up." 

Her companion made no reply. Instead he lowered his head. There was a few minutes of silence, neither felines really feeling up to sleeping at this point, when a strange smell filled Nodin's nose. His head snapped up, his ears forward. "Do you-" 

"Yes." Golden eyes were wide. "The smell. Of something burning. What is that, Nodin? What kind of meat smells that bad when it is burnt?" She hissed, her nose wrinkling upward. 

Nodin's ears flattened as his brain registered the unfamiliar smell. "The wind is from the east, from Asturia. That smell... It's the smell of human flesh... There are people in Asturia burning..." 

**Author's Note:** Just to point out, Nodin, known as a "Colorless", is an albino. That's what the title was referring to. So, hmm... What's going to happen now? What happened to Evadne and Celena? You'll have to read my next installment to find out!


	5. Chapter Four

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:** Hola! How is everyone doing? I actually wrote this installment the same night as Chapter three. This is the first time in a long time I've really lost myself in the writing, which is a good thing, mind you. I felt very refreshed while writing it (despite the fact it was four in the morning). So, hopefully this is better than my last few installments. Anywho, enjoy! 

** Chapter Four **

She hit the ground with a painful thud, her entire back fiery with pain. She would have just laid there, waiting out the awful pangs that were shooting through her entire body, but she found out quickly that it wasn't an option. Large pieces of marble which had once made up the balcony she had just been standing on crashed down around her. She rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a heavy, larger-than-man sized piece. It broke into pieces, sending sharp pieces of the rock outward. Several pieces tore into the skin of her back and she cried out in pain and terror. Another thought occurred to her as the last pieces of debris fell. Where had her mother gone? Was she caught beneath one of the massive slabs of marble? 

"Mum! Mum, where are you!" She cried out, still rolled into a ball on her side, her eyes clinched shut so tight that the tears she was crying could hardly push through. She opened her mouth to cry out again when a hand grasped her arm painfully. Her eyes shot open, terrified that someone, the enemy, had caught her, but only found her mother above her. A stream of blood originating from a large gash on her forehead covered the right side of the woman's face. Despite the relief that her mother was well, Evadne felt a deep fear rise at the look in Celena's eyes. It was a calculating, cold, and carnivorous look. The look of a survivor. The look of warrior in the midst of battle. For the first time in her entire life, Evadne Schezar caught a glimpse of the long "deceased" Dragon Slayer general behind her mother's gaze. 

"Quick, Evadne!" Her mother yelled out. The youth was surprised to realize that her mother _had_ to shout to be heard, for there was suddenly a barrage of noises surrounding them. By the gods, there was so much noise! And fire, a sudden ring of it. The air temperature changed so drastically that it seemed unnatural, the very breaths she took burning her throat with ash. Somehow she had forgotten her mother's words, forgotten her _completely_ as the scene around her clouded her senses. She was pulled from her daydreaming (more like day-nightmares) by her mother's nails digging deeply into her arms once more as she pulled her up brutally. There were no words said now, just running, running as fast as they could from something they couldn't see... 

Evadne couldn't see through the smoke by this point so she followed Celena with a faith only a child can muster for their parents. Celena, on the other hand, ran only by instinct, an instinct she had forgotten she ever had. _I never thought I'd be thinking this, but for once I think I could thank the gods for Dilandau..._ She charged right into someone with such force that it sent her tumbling backwards and into Evadne, both falling to the Asturian soil. Celena quickly braced herself for the bite of a sword or some other taste of death by the enemy, but was surprised when a pair of callused hands hauled her and Evadne to their feet. Her eyes watered as she tried to see her rescuer, but it was her daughter that reacted first. 

"Gaddeth!" It was a frantic cry as she flung herself into the broad chest of her father figure and let out a terrified and, as much as she hated to admit it, vulnerable sob. "Oh, gods, Gaddeth, what's going on?!" 

"We've been attacked." He practically yelled through the clamor around them, his eyes flitting down to the teenager pressed into his chest and then up to Celena's eyes. A knowing glance passed between the two adults, one that was both scared, knowing, and compassionate. Celena knew exactly who was attacking, even before Gaddeth mouthed the word "Zaibach" silently. 

Evadne then pulled herself from the older man, her once panicked face now composed with a cool clarity that sent chills up Gaddeth's spine. His soot streaked face held a bit of worry at the personality twist, so much like her mother's had once done shortly after her return from being Dilandau Albatou. Yet he was distracted from his dark thoughts as something exploded near by. _I guess the fire's reached the supply unit. There goes an entire month's worth of Karosene..._

"Where is this all coming from?!" Evadne cried above what she now recognized as the whir of machines and distant screams, death cries, from the city streets. The dying pleas made her sick to her stomach, made her head seem to spin in an out of control twirl. When she received only a distant glance from the soldier, she paled. "It's the invisible enemy, isn't it?" Gaddeth's gaze grew sharper on her as she muttered the words, her voice somehow carrying above the racket around them. "Like the Great War... Like Fanelia, and Freid... We're going to die..." 

"That's not true!" Gaddeth barked out. "We're getting out of here. Alive." He said it with such certainty that Evadne could almost believe him. Almost. 

"Where's Allen?" Celena spoke for the first time, her eyes losing some of the strength she had borrowed from an entity that was as much a part of her as Gaea was of the universe. 

Gaddeth shrugged. "I just woke up when the attack came. I haven't had a chance to look for him yet." His voice was still a yell, but he was growing hoarse, the smoke and ash seemingly scraping his throat raw. 

But Evadne wasn't listening. Her eyes were focused in on the smoke, her brain dazed. She tried to remember what had just gone through her head, but it seemed to be drifting away from her. A tune, a melody of sorts played through her, encaptured her... No, encapture was the wrong word. _Possessed_ her. What was it? What had the words been? 

_Come to me, Child, come..._

No, it wasn't a song, a lullaby, but a screaming, persistent buzz. Evadne stumbled back, into her mother, her hands raised to her ears, trying to block out the screaming, horrible noise. Much worse than the dying screams around her, it seemed. Yet, despite her agony of the scream, she could feel her feet inch forward, as if in a dance to a rhythm she could no longer catch. Step, step, step- And someone grabbed her from behind violently, yanking her from the dance. The screaming in her ears only grew. 

_Come, bitch! Fill the hole your mother could not! Filthy Schezar, the bitch of Asturia, come here, damn it!_

Evadne hadn't realized she was screaming, a blood curdling scream, until her mother slapped her, full out knocked her to the ground. She bit her lip as that song faded only a bit, whimpers escaping her as she gripped her head, pulling at her hair. "What's wrong, Evadne?! Damn it, tell me!" Despite her mother's earlier blow, her voice was now filled with fear and sorrow. Not because she did not understand what was going on, but because she knew full well. Celena could feel a slight buzzing in the back of her mind, a buzzing she knew her daughter could hear fully. And she knew. She knew that somehow, sometime, along the way, her past had caught up with her. 

She pulled her daughter up into an embrace, giving a very confused and frightened Gaddeth a look that could have made a flower wilt in depression. Tears escaped her eyes, streaming down her face and falling onto the black stained hair of her daughter. But the broken look was soon replaced by one of terror as her eyes focused into the smoke ahead of them, her body going rigid. Gaddeth followed her gaze with a growing sense of dread. At first there seemed to be nothing, as if Celena had merely caught a glimpse of something passing and gone. But soon a form took shape from the smoke. Gaddeth blinked slowly, not understanding what he was seeing, thinking his eyes were betraying him. For the form seemed to shift in the smoke, its body changing shape, the face unrecognizable. Then, as if a final decision had been made on the specter's part, its shape stayed in one place. The soldier's mouth jutted open as the shadowed form was replaced with that of a very convincing Celena look alike. The woman's mouth moved, but no sound seemed to escape her lips, though she was obviously forming words. Gaddeth felt a slight buzzing, almost vibrating, at the back of his skull, and then, in the same place, his mind numbly grasped at the fragment of a phrase. 

_-to me-_

Although Gaddeth could only faintly precept the chants, Evadne seemed to react in full. Her head pulled from her mother's chest, her eyes dazing over as she tried to pull away. Celena gripped her closer, struggling to keep her daughter from going to the smoke figure that looked so much like her. She buried her head in the teen's hair, knowing in that moment how much she meant to her, how she couldn't let her go. "Evadne, don't. Don't give in." 

"But I have to get to her." She said, her voice blank. Yet, as she continued, it turned into something that resembled the whining of a child. "Let me go! Mum's calling me." 

"No, Evadne, no! It's a trick. Like when you think you see the ocean in the road, but it's just a mirage, a reflection. See past it! See it as it truly is and you will be able to fight it." She hissed into her daughter's ear. Evadne blinked slowly, turning her head to look at the smoke figure that looked so much like her mother. She tried to focus, to grasp the words whispered in her ear. Still that buzzing came, that screaming in the back of her head. And yet, as she tried to see past the mirage, the mother that had been standing a few feet away seemed to flicker. Then, like the heat that rises from a flame, the air around the creature moved in waves, and she saw. She saw someone that was not her mother, but a hooded figure. A hooded figure with a long blade in his hand. She forced her head into her mother's chest again fearfully. 

"Momma, I see. I'm afraid." Despite her realization of what the person was, that lullaby, that screaming in her head was still there. Stronger, even. She had to do everything in her will to keep her feet from moving, from shuffling towards that bladed figure. 

Gaddeth was confused by the scene, but extremely spooked as well. He still saw the apparition as a Celena look alike. He cursed himself because he couldn't bring himself to bring his sword up in challenge to the figure. It looked too much like her... 

"I want you to run. Run to the stables, if they are not burnt down now, and mount a horse. And I want you to flee, run as far as you can from Asturia." Celena muttered into her daughter's hair, her eyes never leaving the smoky figure before them. 

"But, Momma, what about you? What about Gaddeth, and Uncle Allen-" 

"Run, Evadne!" Her voice was not calm now and the teen turned in her mother's suddenly stiff arms to see the apparition charging, blade raised high. Behind the enemy an Alseides flickered into sight, its gears whining. A red Alseides. "Run!" It was a scream. 

Gaddeth stood frozen, not being able to see the blade aimed at him, only a vision of Celena running rather determinedly towards them. Evadne stood frozen in place until her mother pushed her away, pushed her behind her. Celena's now freed hands reached forward, grasped the sword in Gaddeth's hand and pulled it from his startled grasp. It was good that she had done so, for she immediately had to turn and raise the blade to block it from crashing down upon his head. With a sensation like that of a wine bottle popping open in the back of his skull, Gaddeth suddenly saw the being as it was. 

Evadne was now running blindly away, the entrancement fading from her mind the farther she ran. She ran by instinct, by raw and survival instinct, finding herself at the stables quicker than she had imagined. Yet, by the way her side seemed to be stitched and the way she couldn't really find her breath, she imagined she had been sprinting for some time. The barn was not burnt to the ground, as she had feared, but aflame, none the less. It took all her might, all her courage, to dash through the doors. She was immediately shrouded in a cloud of smoke that was thicker than that of outside. She brought her arm up in front of her eyes, as if that could ward off the offending clouds of blackness. She stumbled forward, wondering how the hell she was going to get out of here with her horse, when a large and bulky form pushed past her so roughly that she was shoved into one of the stall walls violently. She heard a slight crack as the back of her skull hit the wall, and she felt more than a bit dizzy, but she was too focused on the retreating animal to take notice. 

She ran forward, slightly off balance, towards the slightly trotting horse. It stopped and turned suddenly, its ears pricked forward, its nostrils wide and testing the smoke filled air. When it saw her oncoming form, it turned to run, but too late. She launched herself onto its back with an expert grace and dug her heels into its side. A scream of surprise and, possibly, recognition, came from the steed, and it bolted forward, making the girl grip to its mane to keep her balance. She did not bother to direct her mount, nor try to see where they were going. All she knew was that the sound of the stallion's hooves changed as he galloped through the stone courtyards, through the paved streets, and then, finally, onto the muddied roads lying outside of Asturia's main gates. By the time they had reached the country, the horse had slowed to a tired and weary walk, and the rider on its back fell asleep from exhaustion, fingers interlaced tightly together, her arms around the beast's neck. 

**Author's Note:** Leedeehee, leedeehoo. So, how was it? Please review and tell me. Again, I warn that the story almost seems to have nothing to do with Leviathan's Daughter, but in the end, you'll find it has _ everything _ to do with it. Toodloo!


	6. Chapter Five

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:** Hey everybody! How's it going? Here the next part, as you can see. Please read and review. Forgive me if it stinks. I kinda had to get past a momentary writer's block to write it. Yay! Working on a new story right now with lots of romance and action and intrigue! Woopie! But I won't put it out for a while, so... Toodloo! 

**Chapter Five**

The wagon was still dark and the two felines were fast asleep when Cassiel woke up. There was that one moment of wonderment as she tried to focus in with eyes that couldn't cut through the darkness. _Why is the ground so hard? Where am I? Why do I feel like I've been hit by a sixteen wheeler?_ All these thoughts jumbled up in her head before another long pause of silence within her skull. And then she remembered. She remembered the fight with her boyfriend, the drive home, the wreck... Was she in a hospital? Or worse, in the care of some stranger? At those thoughts she bolted up, only to fall back to the cool metal floor. Pain etched up her sides, and yet... The accident had been a horrible thing, hadn't it? Why wasn't she dead, or at least in pieces? Another pause ensued as she lay there, sprawled on the floor. 

She didn't know how long it took her to finally get up, but when she did she realized why the world seemed to shift and bounce around her. It wasn't because of her weakness, as she had thought, but because whatever she was in was moving. She reached her hands out blindly, grasping for anything- 

Her hands curled around an iron bar and she recoiled. Was she in jail? She should be in a hospital, not a prison... It wasn't like she had killed anyone, had she? Oh, gods, what if she had hit that man? She felt slightly sick and stumbled forward into something very soft, furry, and warm. 

"Holy shit!" It was her cry as she stumbled back into the bars, her voice hoarse and weak. Gods, gods, godsgodsgodsgods... She was in a cage with some sort of animal! There was a tired exclamation in front of her and she pulled herself into a ball, trying to get as far as she could from the unseen figure. What kind of sicko would stick her in the same cage with a wild beast?! Had she been found by some sort of lunatic- 

"Can't you watch where you're going?" A voice, a deep, rumbly voice grumbled out in front of her. "And quit hyperventilating. We saved you once, I'm not helping again." Despite the human words, Cassiel still sat huddled in that corner, trembling. 

Another voice spoke now, a softer, gentler voice. "Be quiet, Nodin! You've scared her enough already." And then there was a slight shuffling and Cassiel flinched away from the sound, but relaxed as something warm and gentle touched her forehead, as if checking for a temperature. Yet, still, it almost seemed as if the touch wasn't one of flesh, but of fur... 

"How are you feeling, child?" The voice was undoubtedly female, and soft, like a lullaby. 

"Al-alright. Where am I?" She asked, letting her body slump in exhaustion. 

"On the road between Crima and Corinth. We're also a few miles west of Asturia." She replied. Cassiel's brow wrinkled in confusion. 

"Where? I've never heard of those towns. I live in San Antonio, Texas." She said, more calm now. 

"San and Tonio? Texas?" Nodin piped up brilliantly from behind the two. 

"Yeah, you know. America. United States of America?" She said, her voice condescending. If her tone of voice hadn't suggested her thoughts, her next words did. "What kind of moron are you?" 

"A very hungry moron." He growled out. The growl was purely animal, like that of a lion's, and Cassiel realized with a burst of adrenaline that this man before her may not be _human_. 

"America. It is a Mystic Moon nation. Dornkirk had documents on it." Spoke the female, her voice quiet and thoughtful. 

"You're telling me that this human is from the Mystic Moon?" The cat-boy laughed. "Yeah, right. I've only heard of two creature to ever come from that cursed place, one being the damned Zaibachian warrior and the other, the dream girl of Fanel." 

"You are in quite a mood today, aren't you, Nodin? Perhaps it means something big is about to happen. Have you thought of that?" Hissed Tanara, extremely annoyed with her companion's inconsiderate and disrespectful talk. 

"Yap, yap, yap. That's all you ever do." Muttered Nodin quite testily. 

"_Me_? At least _I'm_ not the one whining every two seconds-" 

"What the hell are you two talking about? Mystic Moon? Oh, gods, it wasn't a dream, was it? The earth in the sky... Oh, gods, oh gods, where am I?" Her voice had again returned to its fearful state. Tanara smiled warmly, wishing she could comfort the girl, but not knowing how. And Nodin? Nodin rolled his eyes as he watched the human panic and let out a grunt of annoyance. 

"Why did we save her again?" He questioned under his breath. 

"Nodin!" Tanara snapped, giving him a punch in the arm. He chuckled a bit. 

"Sorry, Tan. Just kidding around with you." He lied. He winced as he saw that she knew he had lied. 

"It's all right. Here, relax." She put a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder. "By the way, I'm Tanara. My repulsive friend over here is Nodin." 

The girl collected her nerves with a hardly held grace. "I'm Cassiel." 

******** 

"Get off me!" 

"Ooowww!" 

Tanara woke to the sound of the two bickering. How long had it last been since she had last been awoken by the fighting pair? Too short a while ago for her to let pass. "Would you two quit fighting?!" She growled out, her hunger and weariness melding into the snappish comment. 

"He's sprawled all over me!" The new member to the group, Cassiel, exclaimed defensively. 

"What did you expect?" He received a hard punch in the ribs from the human for that. "Hey, damn it! I didn't mean it that way! I meant that the cage is too small. It was hard enough for the two of us to manage in this small little box, and now that _you've_ come along..." 

"I told the two of you to shut your mouths!" Tanara hissed out, her ears laying flat on the top of her head. 

"Gods, Tan, what's gotten into you?" Nodin mumbled out grumpily as he tried to readjust his position in the dark cage, rolling himself into a ball. Even when he was in this uncomfortable position he still brushed up against Cassiel and Tanara. With a final roar of frustration, Nodin was on his feet, pacing ever so slightly, avoiding the two below him. "That's it. I'm never going to get any sleep with the two of you in here." 

"Tsk, tsk. Aren't we the Scrooge today..." Muttered Cassiel smugly. 

"Scrooge? What the hell is that supposed to-" 

Nodin felt himself suddenly skidding forward. His footing lost and he again felt himself sprawled out over the strange smelling Mystic Moon girl. She opened her mouth to make some reproachful remark, but Tanara's voice stopped either of them from opening up into bickering again. "Do you smell that, Nodin?" 

The other cat-person froze, his position over the girl momentarily forgotten. "Yes. It is a girl." 

"She smells of Asturia." 

"She smells of burnt flesh." 

Cassiel felt the fine hairs on her back stand on end. "What are you two talking about? Smell? I can't smell anything." 

"If she's come for help," Nodin muttered darkly, ignoring her questions, "she's come to the wrong place." 

************** 

A hand, over her mouth, and she opened her lips and tried to scream. The world before her was spinning, was too bright. Her eyes darted to the side, falling onto the grimy face of some stranger. She kicked and flailed, her horse screaming out and rushing away as she was pulled from its back. Her movements were jerky and she watched as another man grabbed her horse by its halter. "Relax, child." The man chuckled into her ear, his foul breath rushing across her face. "We'll take care of you _just_ fine." More laughter, from behind her and around her. A groups of men. _Slavers._ As she realized who they were, she calmed. It was much better to faced with a bunch of cowardly slave drivers than by remnants of the Zaibach army. Her brow furrowed in concentration. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she brought her right foot up with the grace and flexibility she had obtained in her dancing lessons within Palas. Yet, with that move also came the power she had grasped from the sword training taught to her by many young knights doting for her attention under Allen Schezar's command. Her leg was straight and pressed against her chest as the flat of her foot hit his face with a sickening thump. He stumbled back from her, releasing his hold on her. 

She took one moment to dry heave, the world around her much too frolicky for its own good, in her opinion, before she was on her feet, running into the thick brush and forests. She would have stopped running if she had heard the leader of the group order his men to let the too troublesome girl go, but she didn't hear him. So she kept running, despite the fact that no one was after her. The light that peeked through the trees blinded her, and the ground beneath her still spun, but she was too panicked, or perhaps her concussion was too powerful, for her to think logically. All Evadne could remember was her burning town and her mother, pushing her away from... from... _Something_. 

Her feet hit soft ground and sunk into it. She struggled through the thigh deep mud, suddenly aware that she had reached the swamp lands, about twenty miles from Palas and Asturia. She struggled forward, still in her wild panic, when she sunk into something that was more sludge than mud. She gasped as her entire body was encased in the stuff and tried to cry out, but it pulled over her head like a blanket, forcing its way into her mouth. She pulled up, barely able to, and tried the grasp the pool's edges, only to find mud that wouldn't support her. She sunk beneath the sludge again, trying to reach the surface. Air! Gods, she needed air! Her hand reached the cool atmosphere above and her mouth opened, wanting breath it could not have, and she swallowed a lung full of the muck. It was dark, the mud stung her eyes, and she felt herself begin to sink, her eyes rolling into the back of her head, her mouth agape. Only fingertips grazed the surface now, and then her hand was below the tide- 

A powerful grasp hooked onto her hand, pulled her up, onto dry ground, a muddied, lifeless form.


	7. Chapter Six

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:**Writer's block strikes again! Thanks to Zibbelcoot, I felt good enough to wrap up this chapter and get it out today. Yay to Zibbelcoot! Well, again I apologize. Sorrysorrysorry... But here's the next part! 

**Chapter Six**

Cassiel woke with a jolt as a sudden light flooded into the dark compartment she had been in. She squinted her eyes and could make out the blurry figure of a large man in the doorway to the cart. She was alone. More alone than she had ever been in her entire life. Sure, she had been left by herself, for days at a time on the Mystic Moon, but never did she feel so lost as now, staring up at the two moons that were making their appearance on the horizon. And now, here, with strangers in some world of uncontained violence... What had happened to the person who had found the traveling party? Cassiel had heard the scuffle, the other's escape... What would happen to her now? She was a prisoner and at a total loss of control. 

The barred door to the cage swung open and Cassiel cringed back. Out of the corner of her eyes she could make out the sleeping forms of Nodin and Tanara, their bodies shrouded in shadow. Had she time before the man had grabbed her by the arm and pulled her out violently, she would have taken a closer look at them. She could almost swear she had seen something like tails... 

"Come on, doll. No need to struggle." The man who had her arm in his grasp smirked out. A trickle of fear reverberated through her chest, rushing through her body and up to her head, pounding there. There was a knocking noise in her ears, a throbbing. What was happening, what was- 

"Tanara! Nodin!" She was surprised by her own cries. She tried to turn her head back, but couldn't turn her body as well. A few strands of her dirty and blood caked hair fell into her face. She struggled against the man's strength, but she had neither the advantage of weight or strength. She could hear Tanara call out behind her, a warning to the man, a cry of alarm. Then she was out in the open, the dimming sunset pounding into her eyes, clearing her senses. 

Back in the dark cage, Tanara was banging her hands against the bars. "We have to get to her Nodin! What if they... What if they hurt her?" Her voice was a frantic wailing and her eyes unconsciously moved to take in the motionless form of her sister. She might as well be lifeless. They forced food into her system, cleaned up her waist... It was no real challenge to see that they were planning to sell her as more of a hunting treasure, for her pelt and other parts, than for a slave. A broken sob escaped her as she leaned her head into the bars. This new Mystic Moon girl was supposed to make up for her mistakes. She would protect her as she had never been able to protect her sister. And now? She had failed. Failed miserably. 

Warm arms pulled away from her misery as more sobs escaped her. "Shh... They will not harm her." Nodin's voice was calm, despite his own doubts. Tanara pushed her head deeper into his chest and he gave a faint kiss to her forehead. She sighed in her lover's embrace, her tail swinging from side to side lithely. She felt nothing but him, smelt nothing but him, saw nothing but him... And Nodin? 

His eyes were on the opening they had taken Cassiel away through. 

************** 

She was gasping for breath. Cold, why was it so cold? She was tired of running, but too tired to face her fears. To let go... All she wanted was to be back home, back to Palas, back home with a mother who never was home. _Come on, Evadne._ A voice whispered in her head that was not her own, but not the screaming, magic laced voice that had tried to draw her from her mother. This one was weary, yet warm. A woman's voice that couldn't quite filter through into the real, living world. _Evadne, have strength. Worse trials are to come. Wake up now. This is only the beginning for you, though it's been going on for longer than even you can know. Do not fail me. _

And she awoke. 

She was trembling, a mass huddled deeply in something warm. It was a blanket, she realized, and her skin was bare beneath it. She trembled again, clenching her eyes shut tightly. So cold, it was too damn cold- 

"If you'd roll over, closer to the fire, you wouldn't be so chilled." A voice called out behind her. She snapped into attention, clenching the coarse folds of the wool blanket about her chest and legs, a blush rising into her deathly pale cheeks. She bolted up, only to raise one hand to her ringing head and falling back to the ground. She turned her head to the side. Her eyes first caught on the fire that raged into the night sky. She watched the bright, licking flames dance about, flare out, like... like wings. Great, feathered wings. She scooted on her back towards the fire, letting it span out and warm her frigid body. It was then that she focused in on the boy across from her. 

Yes, he did seem but a boy, perhaps her age. His maroon hair was cut roundly about his head, though his bangs were a bit longer, fell forward into a point around his eyes. She couldn't catch the color of his eyes, but they only seemed to reflect the smoke and fire and shadows. He was young, yes, but the slight tension that filled his body seemed to hint that maybe that was not so true. He sat there, staring at the flames, a horse grazing lazily by his side, his chin leaning on the handle of his sheathed sword. It didn't strike her odd that he carried a sword, most people who came in the Schezar courtyards carried swords, and so did most of her uncle's men and students. What did strike her odd was where they were and she couldn't quite figure out where exactly she was supposed to be. It seemed that the two of them were in a highly grassed field or meadow. Come to think of it, this place did look familiar. The forest thinned out only a few yards away, and she could just picture the swampy lands beyond that expanse. The sun was just over the horizon and the two moons hung gently in the sky above, like parental figures looking down on their children as protection. 

"Where are my clothes?" Evadne surprised herself with the abruptness of her voice along with the cold edge to it. The boy across the fire from her jerked at her words, his eyes torn from the fire and now focused onto her. There was a long silence before she spoke again. "My clothes?" Her words were laced with a weary and cautious malice. 

A smug smirk she didn't quite like filtered across his face. "They're quite dirty. I had to take them off you so you wouldn't freeze." She must have flushed horribly at this because his eyes lit up with mischief and he began moving and talking as an actor might, his movements and tone comical. "You needn't worry about my seeing you in the nude. I grew up the only boy among three siblings in a two roomed house." There was a pause and a much more teasing look crossed his face. "Besides, I've seen plenty of broads with much better figures than you." 

Her jaw dropped and she flushed even deeper. "You..." She was at a loss for words which made the boy across the fire from her break into uncontrolled laughter. She pulled the coarse blanket up farther around her shoulders. 

"Oh, don't be that way! I was just trying to get some kind of answer out of you. Here, I'm Evan Corsin, of the Asturian Corsins." He gave her a gleeful grin and a mocking pride shone out of his entire stature. 

"You are so full of shit. There _are_ no Corsins among the nobility of Asturia!" She growled out in malice. 

"How would you know?" He asked smartly, raising a copper eyebrow. 

"Because I happen to actually _be_ part of Asturia's nobility." She said, her being holding as much dignity as it could when she was completely naked, covered in some cotton blanket that was making her itch horribly, and faced with a stranger who wouldn't quit grinning like a dog. 

"Oh, yeah, of course." Replied Evan sarcastically. "I always happen to find the noble daughters of rich politicians drowning in thick mud in the swamplands." 

Her face reddened and her mouth felt thick with anger and wounded pride. "Well, I-I... I happen to have a very well known family name." 

"Mmhmm." He was feigning boredom now and showing more attention to the fire than to the girl in front of him. 

"I am! My name's Evadne Schezar and my uncle just _happens _to be Sir Allen Schezar, the best swordsman in all Gaea." She snapped out. She instantly took note of her mistake when Evan's eyes flashed back into focus on her, as if he were startled. She could see their color now, a deep hazel flecked with jade. 

He quickly covered the surprise on his face and gazed at her skeptically. "You don't _act _like any noble woman I've ever met, much less like I would imagine a Schezar to act. Are you sure you're not some bastard child who's trying to impress me?" 

Evadne wasn't an overly emotional person, at least compared to other court ladies. But there were her weak, soft, tender areas of the soul and the whole "bastard child" thing hit a bad note with her. Plus, she was very tired and very alone (excluding the over talkative Evan). All of these elements added into a huge feeling of self pity and despair that even Evadne Schezar had a hard time dealing with. She turned from him abruptly, biting her lip as she felt hot tears boiling in her eyes. "I _am_ a Schezar, damn you." She hissed out. Even quieter, in barely a whisper, she sighed, "It doesn't matter if I'm a bastard child." The tears spilt over at this. She was thinking of her mother, thinking of how much she hated her for making her what she was, abandoning her... And how much she missed her, how much she worried that she were not alive at all. _She'll come after me_. Thought Evadne in a falsely optimistic mental voice. _Allen and Mum and Gaddeth... They'll send after me, come search for me..._

"I-I'm sorry, I forgot-" Evan's voice died. He sounded extremely uncomfortable. _Sorry about what? Of course you would know about the Schezar bastard._ Evadne thought bitterly. _Everyone knows by word of mouth of my mother's sins. _"But, you really shouldn't go around telling people about your lineage." His tone had changed from one of embarrassment and pity to one of disapproval. "There are a lot of people who don't like you're uncle. You could be endangering yourself-" 

"I'm perfectly fine." She snapped, her back still turned to him. "Just let me sleep and I'll be out of your hair by tomorrow afternoon." 

"You really don't have to-" but he stopped and just sighed. "Goodnight, Miss I'm-so-perfect-it-must-be-a-crime." He muttered under his breath, obviously not thinking (or caring) that she had heard. 

"Goodnight, Mister Let's-dig-into-a-complete-stranger's-personal-life." She growled out. A grunt of indignation was emitted by the boy across the fire from her before she could hear him rolling out his blanket (which had been leaning against the rock he had been brooding on). Then there was a little more shuffle that she imagined was him taking off unnecessary garments to sleep in, which made her blush a deep red as she shut her eyes tightly so she could try to sleep. Finally, Evan seemed to have settled down and she let out a sigh of relief. A few more seconds, and Evadne's pride had completely dissolved, leaving her with a guilty, painful pit in her stomach. It took her a few minutes to gain up the courage, but she finally sputtered out, very quietly, "By the way, thank you. For saving me, I mean." 

Another long pause and then a shuffle as Evan turned on his side to glance at her stiff form beneath the blanket. "Hey, anytime." He muttered, sounding a bit out of his league and a bit embarrassed himself. With that, the two fell asleep underneath the ebony sky. 

*********** 

Evadne woke just before dawn, shivering. Dew covered her shoulders, which she had failed to keep covered during the night. She stirred before sitting up, gripping the blanket to her chest as she glanced around, startled. The fire had burnt itself out and the sleeping form of Evan wasn't too far away. She stared at him, blinking like an owl, before she completely regained her memory of everything that had happened thus far. She shuddered again, a wave of loneliness and homesickness washing through her before she stood on her bare feet, making sure the blanket was still covering up as much skin as possible. She threw a glance at the bundle that was the boy who had saved her the day before. She fidgeted uncomfortably, the cold ground beneath her feet causing a chill to run up her heels, through her calves and thighs, before spreading out violently through her entire torso. She wiggled her toes against the crushed grass where she had slept. Beyond this little rectangle of dry ground grew other plants that were glistening with dew. Her stomach growled restlessly and she stood there, frozen, as she contemplated her options. The sun was just beyond the horizon, giving the sky a grey look with no signs of golden rays yet in sight. 

_He must have food in his saddle bags. Surely._ She thought quite logically for someone who was shivering so violently that her teeth clattered together with a deafening clanking. 

She shuffled towards the two lumps of leather, leaning against that same boulder he had sat on the night before, a few feet from him. She tiptoed towards it, almost instantly regretting it as her feet was soaked with freezing dew, but being so determined that she refused to turn back. Plus, how could she sleep when her stomach ached and her shoulders were frozen so? 

She paused as she reached the sleeping boy. _Over or around?_ She thought quite dully. The way over seemed much better, since it would take only one delicate step instead of the way around, which would take at least four. Plus, she was feeling lazy. She lifted the blanket up to her knees and took a graceful, tiptoed step over his body. A tip of the blanket that slipped from her grasp at just the wrong moment tickled his nose and he stirred as she finish her trek over him. He let out a small grunt, which made her freeze like a hunted animal, before he settled back to sleep again. She released her tense muscles when she saw all was safe before taking one more long, careful step. There she found the saddlebags and set to her search. She opened the first one, slipping the leather strap from its buckle with a moderate bit of difficulty. Inside, the first thing she found was a few strips of dried meat. But Evadne's curiosity rose and she fumbled around a bit more. Inside this bag was also some soap, a toothbrush, and a bag that, when touched, jingled as if it contained some kind of coin. She pulled out some of the dried meat, closed the bag as tightly as she could, before going on to the next one. Here she found clothes. 

Slacks and faded shirts and... Her fingers stopped as they brushed against leather. She forced back giggles. She could just imagine Evan in tight leather pants, looking awkward. Of course, she had no idea what his form was like, since she had only seen him sitting in darkness the night before. But from the length of the living bundle behind her and how small his torso had been, she could imagine him being short and perhaps even stocky. Just imagine, a fat boy in tight fitted leather pants. This made her laugh more as she tugged on the leather which seemed to be under everything else- 

Her smile faltered and tripped over itself, falling into a downward, sick looking line. 

Leather it was, black and shiny and obviously well treasured and cared for. A new, stiff uniform, that's what it was, with armor deeper in the bag. An emblem of a great flaming phoenix was displayed via a badge on the front. Evadne began to visibly shake. Small words were on the edge... _Reborn as a Whole._ Oh, gods, she knew the emblem, she knew it well from some of the of duty soldiers that came to some of the Asturian fairs, as if they wore such a seal with pride. She turned slowly. Evan still slept behind her. His sword lay sheathed by his side. With weak and halting movements, she leaned over and picked the sword up. She unbuckled the clasp of it and pulled at the hilt. The same emblem lay engraved in silver on its handle, and as she pulled on it, the top of the blade displayed the beginning of the phrase, _Reborn as a Whole_, as well. She wanted to drop the sword, but her grip was so tight around it that her knuckles were turning white. Memories of the attack on Palas, of her mother screaming for her to run, of those strange voices, calling to her, resurfaced. 

"The emblem of Zaibach... Oh, gods, I've got to get out of-" 

Just as she started to fall back on her feet so she could push herself up, a swift movement was issued and a hard grasp was at her wrist, twisting it slightly. She dropped the sword then, the free arm coming up to make sure the blanket about her didn't slip lower than it should. Her eyes flashed forward, afraid and panicked, to meet the hazel gaze of Evan. He looked very serious, and almost sick himself at the sight of her obvious terror. 

"You really shouldn't play with swords, Schezar. They make paranoid boys like me kinda jumpy, especially if he wakes with someone fiddling with a blade over his head."


	8. Chapter Seven

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:**Yay! This part came out sooner! *claps* This was a fun chapter, though I'm rather repulsed by one of my own characters... You'll know who soon enough. But, please review! PLEASE!!! I'm dying here! I'm going to start putting in little sections that tell what happened last time, all right? Just in case someone needs it... 

**Last time...** Cassiel is pulled from the cage for unknown reasons while Evadne wakes up to find her rescuer, a boy named Evan. Traipsing around while he's asleep, Evadne finds that he's a Zaibach soldier just about the time he wakes up and catches her in her scavenging... 

**Chapter Seven**

It wasn't until dawn of the next day that Nodin and Tanara were let out of the stuffy cage and allowed to look about. Tanara had bolted out of the confinement almost immediately, ready to find, and save, the girl from the Mystic Moon. Nodin, on the other hand, was strangely calm, stretching his lithe body out before he set out slowly after his female counterpart. 

"Where is she?" Her voice was frantic, afraid, panicked. "Cassiel! Cassiel!" 

"I'm right here- Shit, what the hell _are_ you?" Tanara spun around to meet the tired eyes of Cassiel. Her jaw dropped. Nodin followed her gaze apathetically. The only sign of interest he showed was the raising of two white ears. 

He then shrugged and went back to comb out the tangles in his hair with his claws. "Why am I not surprised?" He asked dully. 

"Egh, I spent all that time stuck in a cage with... with... _those_?" Cassiel visibly shuttered. She was in a fairly long coat, and that seemed to be about all. It hung around her mid thigh. She was casually sucking on a cigar, something that only one of the bosses could have given her. One of the men came up behind her, a scruffy looking man in his mid thirties, and wrapped his arms around her thin waste before delicately kissing her long neck before smirking up to the two cat people. Cassiel carried one of her own little smiles, as well. She turned her head to the side slightly and gave the man a look. "Not right now, Ty. I need to talk to my _friends_." This seemed to amuse the other figure to no end and he left them. 

"You, you _slept _with him?" Tanara asked, sounding quite horrified by the thought, as soon as the man had left the scene completely. 

Cassiel seemingly ignored the question, circling the two felines, looking slightly appalled and interested at the same time. It was a few moments before she finally did take note of the catgirl's inquisitions. "Oh, not _just_ him." She replied with an edge of pride in her voice. 

"Hey, a traveling prostitute. How fitting." Nodin spoke sarcastically, smiling quite smugly up to Cassiel. Tanara seemed to be in some sort of a stupor, staring ahead dully. 

The black haired girl snarled back at the catboy. "At least I'm not stuck in that horribly filthy cage with the likes of you." 

"No, you're just stuck in the horribly filthy beds of scum. Way to go from a bad situation to one that's even worst." 

There was a long moment in which a look almost close to that of shame crossed Cassiel's face, but then it was gone, and she was smiling serenely down on the two crouching cats. "You're just jealous. Jealous cause I used what I have to get ahead." 

"Get ahead? How is becoming a whore getting ahead?" Nodin had finally lost his cool, and was now on his feet, facing the girl that was only draped in a coat. 

This only seemed to make Cassiel more at ease. "Females have been below men since the beginning of time. The only way to pull ahead, from a low position to one that will someday be higher, is through our power over men. And the only power we have over men is the control of their sex drive, which happens to control a lot of a man's life. Here's an example. Some girl ends up in some place she's never been before as a slave, someone who would be sold time and time again, never free. One night, she's offered a chance to take advantage of her owners, to pull ahead. She takes the opportunity. Now, she's no longer a slave, but someone with the advantages of a partner. Next time, when she reaches a town, she's not bound like a slave, but rather treated and loved like royalty, and so she has the freedom to go where she wishes without any questions asked. She walks away in broad daylight, free. That simple. An escape. And then she has the chance to find a way home." 

"You're disgusting." It was Tanara's voice, one filled with a deep disgust, and deep hate and resentment. "You're insane." 

Cassiel laughed at her, but the noise sounded almost desperate to Nodin's ears. "Yeah, and now I'm in more control than you'll ever be. Though, I can't blame you. What man would want a _cat_?" 

************* 

His grip had tightened on her wrist, a sharp pain that jumped up her arm and clouded out all her senses. "Please, please don't kill me..." It was a pathetic whimper, one that Evadne couldn't repress. 

Evan blinked at her once, twice, before releasing her and grabbing the sword from the ground where she had dropped it. "Now why the hell would I do that?" He asked, sounding extremely tired. He reached up and rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers as he placed his sword on the ground, on the opposite side of his body from Evadne. 

"You're a Zaibach. Why _wouldn't_ you?" Asked the silver haired girl quite quizzically as she rubbed the wrist that had been in his grip just moments before. 

He glanced up at her sharply. "Just because I'm a Zaibach doesn't mean I'm going to chop every innocent person I come across into tiny, unidentifiable pieces. I only do that on my bad days." He smiled up at her quite lamely. "Besides, I'm Asturian." 

She stared at him as if there was something wrong with him. "Asturian? But what are you doing with Zaibach?" 

"I wasn't kidding you when I told you I was of the Asturian Corsins, though we're not even close to being nobility. I used to fence and other such stuff for money at the festivals in Palas. A man, a recruiter from Zaibach, stumbled across me and offered me a chance to join their army. Said that if I passed a few special tests, physical and mental, I could even join a growing group of elite soldiers. I was rather doubtful. I knew how to read quite well, and I read enough things to easily pass the mental tests, but I was paranoid because of all the stories I had heard about Zaibach and the horrible people there. It was another month before anyone else came out to try to recruit me. It was this girl, a beautiful, smart, brilliant, sexy girl named Catylin Morin." He seemed to daze off at this slightly, looking up to the brightening sky. Evadne had forgotten she was cold and seemed to be listening very intently to his story. "She told me of the new cause of Zaibach, of how the new emperor, Emperor Damar, was currently working to bring together his divided kingdom, of re-industrializing their country. She gave me papers, gave me proof, and then told me that if I joined, I would become part of the Privileged, led by a young, new, brilliant man named Keahi Laramie. Strategos Laramie." 

"The Privileged." Evadne spoke quietly, her gaze focusing in on Evan's. "The Dragonslayers, of coarse." She spoke rather sharply. 

Evan again looked up to her, leaning back on his elbows, looking completely at ease. "A lot like the old Dragonslayers, yes, with fifteen, but nothing like that. We don't go to conquer lands, we're trained to protect Zaibach, to settle feudal battles among the small states our emperor is trying to bring peace to. We're not training for war, Evadne Schezar. Quite the opposite. We're training on how to avoid wars from ever beginning." 

"We?" She asked skeptically. "So, you chose to become one of these 'Privileged'? And that's where you're heading?" 

"Yes, to take my reserved place among them. And," he gave her a sly, blissful, content smile, "you know that girl, Catylin Morin?" Evadne only nodded. Evan shifted a bit and brought up one hand, his left hand, and dangled it before her. A simple gold band, or perhaps even of a lesser metal like copper, was slid over his ring finger. "As soon as I get to my reserved destination, I'm going to make her Catylin Corsin, of the Corsins of Asturia." He grinned at her without holding back, looking like the overjoyed fool he was. Evadne stared at him, dumbstruck. 

"You're marrying her?" 

"Oh, hell, yes." He said quite gleefully. 

Evadne's forehead knotted in confusion. She could almost believe him. Almost... "But what about Palas?" 

He seemed to awaken from his daydreaming, but the smirk wouldn't leave his face. "Palas? I might go back after I marry Catylin and go through the first few steps of training. I'd like to let her see everything that was important to me-" 

"No," interrupted Evadne persistently. "I mean, you say Zaibach isn't focused on attacking other countries, but then why did they attack Palas?" Her voice was rising as the smile on Evan's face was falling. "If the cause for Zaibach is supposed to be so great, then why the hell did they attack Asturia, why did they-" 

"Hey, woah, calm down." Evan said, his eyes a little wide as he watched her. "Now, start from the beginning. What are you talking about?" His tan skin had paled considerably in the early morning light, and he looked almost sick. 

She gave him an odd look. "You should know. You _would _know. Why do you think you found me in the middle of a swamp? I escaped Palas before they destroyed it completely. There was a fire, and Alseides, and a sorcerer, I believe-" 

"Is this your idea of a joke?" Evan was growing mad, his hazel glare sharpening on her. "Look, even if I did believe you, Zaibach doesn't even use the Alseides model anymore, and the sorcerers have all but left." 

Tears clouded Evadne's vision. "I'm not lying! My mother was there, and so was my uncle, and my friends! You don't believe, well, that's fine. But I am telling you the truth. Palas is conquered." 

The soldier stared at her skeptically and grimly before sighing and nodding. He stood and she averted her gaze from his form, only in his undergarments. "Hurry up and get dressed." He said as he was pulling on his pants. "We're taking a small visit to Palas." ********** 

It took them a day and a night to reach what remained of Palas. Evan refused to stop, even for the smallest rest, and it was by moonlight that they came upon the desolated city. Evadne's nightgown hadn't been very suitable for travel, though that was what had been worn during her escape, so she was now clad in the soldier's clothing. It fit her quite well, Evan being about her height and weight, though his clothes were a little tight on her hips and his boots quite a bit larger than her feet. She was asleep, her head resting between his shoulder blades, her arms loose around his waist, when they reached the top of a hill that overlooked Palas and all her fallen glory. It was the stiffening of Evan's body and the slightly skittish prances of the horse beneath them that woke Evadne. 

She looked down upon the debris left from the attack. She could smell the burning and rotting flesh of humans upon the once salty breeze. It made her want to cough and choke upon her own breath, but she didn't do so. The quietness that had settled over the area was almost tangible and held a complete sacred feeling to it. To break the silence seemed impossible to Evadne, and horrible. _Perhaps it is all a horrible dream,_ thought Evadne, closing her topaz eyes, tears leaking from the corners as she pressed her head into Evan's back. _If I don't speak, if I don't acknowledge, perhaps it will fade away. If I say anything, make any noise, it will seal this to reality. _

"Evadne... This couldn't... This _is not _the work of Zaibach." His voice was breaking despite itself, the rage and despair in it seeming to rape the air of her solitude. The only reply she made was to press her face further into his back, her arms tightening around him. He smelled like the places she used to be surrounded by. He smelled like the training room of her uncle's estate, where the knights would practice their skill till they had no more power to execute the maneuvers. He smelled like Asturia used to, a salt breeze that was now filled with the stench of death. He _was_ Palas, as it used to be, when Queen Millerna and King Dryden held her in peace. He was the smell of Asturia, with a little pinch of some other scent... _Zaibach_. 

"Let's go." She whispered into his body. Evan could feel his shirt growing wet where her face rested. Saturated with her tears. He glanced back at her, his own gaze glazed over as he tried not to cry at his demolished home. 

"We should go in." He said, his voice strangely calm. "If this is not Zaibach's work, I must see whose it is." 

Evadne pulled away from him suddenly. "No." She said in a voice that was cold as ice. 

"No?" 

"No, there's nothing to see. No one's there. Let's just leave." She whispered quietly. 

He stared back at her, over his shoulder, quietly, before shaking his head. "I have to do this. For me, Evadne. But I can't leave you here." She just glared back at him before laying her head back against him, tightening her hold. 

"I don't want to see. You can go, and I'll go as well, but I won't look. I don't think I'd make it." Her voice was collective now, as if she were being very rational about it. 

"You're a lot stronger than you can imagine. Everyone is, to a point." Evan's voice held a strange, brotherly pride for the girl latched on to him. "Just don't look, breath through your mouth, not your nose. We may have to draw back soon, anyway, because it may not be safe to breath the air any longer. Okay?" 

"All right." 

************** 

They only made it a few yard through the North gates of Palas before they had to turn back. The rot was so thick in the air that the two could taste it, and their mount began to stumble blindly ahead, as if the stench overpowered all its thoughts. Evadne was still pressed tightly into Evan's back when they crossed back through the gates, both gasping slightly, and a great deal paler. 

There was no warning of the attack until it was upon them.


	9. Chapter Eight

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:**Yay again! Another fairly good timed part came out. This one doesn't even talk about Cassiel and her group, since what's going on is MUCH more interesting. It's also a bit shorter than the last chapter, but hopefully still good. Oh, note on Playing God. I won't continue it till I've seen all of the series (which should be soon, thanks to a local Anime rental place), which I need to do to make the plot work out JUST right. Alright? Well, enjoy this chapter. It was rather fun to write, and once you read it, you'll all give me weird looks. Ok? Okay. 

**Last time...** Evan and Cassiel take a small trip into the debris that was once Palas in search of answers to who attacked their homeland. Unfortunately, trouble seems like it may be brewing... 

**Chapter Eight**

_Clip... clip... clip... clip... _The horse was slow, to say the least, trudging along. The North gate loomed farther ahead and Evadne rather felt its approach than saw it from her position. Her head was still pushed harshly into Evan's chest, pushed so tightly to it that she was afraid she was smothering herself to death. But there was no way of knowing. She felt empty. The scent of dead bodies, the sound of vultures bickering over pieces of meat, the slightest glance of burnt flesh, writhing with maggots... All of it ate her away, ate so deep into her system that she felt sick. Distanced and sick, her stomach writhing within her body. Part of her resented Evan for being so pigheaded, making her come. But she was grateful, as well. Grateful because she wasn't alone anymore. 

_Clip... Clip... Clip-clip... Clip-clip-clip-clip _Evadne's eyes shot open at the same time that she felt Evan stiffen against her. The horse had picked up its pace, but the rhythm of its hooves on the stone roads seemed off... Her eyes widened. No, there wasn't the sound of just their mount's increasing pace, but that of another horse, as well. As she looked up, she noticed that a thick fog had settled in over the area, partially blinding them, and a breeze had picked up enough ash to hinder their sight as well. Evan was still stiff when another set of hoof beats set in, and another. They seemed to echo off of the tall walls of Palas's border, making it impossible to decipher from which direction they were coming from. 

"Evan..." 

"Shh!" Hissed the elite Privileged, his back still stiff. He stopped the horse, though it seemed to paw the ground restlessly, suddenly alert and edgy. "When I count to three, we're getting off the horse and running towards the wall. Keep your back to it." He said between clenched teeth. He felt her nod against his back. _I should have worn my armor in... I'm at a disadvantage if they're trained soldiers..._ "One... Tw-" 

_Thunk_

The horse reared back, screaming in pain. He kicked it in the sides, trying to get it to go forward, but the whites of its eyes shown bright and a slight foam dripped from its mouth. "Evan, the horse!" Cried Evadne. He risked a glance back and caught sight of a large arrow protruding from their mount's side, a few inches if front of Evadne's thigh. A gathered cry rang out, that of a group of men, and their horse reared back again. Evan lost his grip in his still half-turned position as the stallion twisted to the side. He fell backwards as it fell to its left, ramming into Evadne, pushing her out of the way of the falling animal, one final push from him as he tried to- 

Pain, brilliant, splitting up his leg, flashing like liquid flame through his skull, blinding him in its intensity. He cried out in a high pitched scream, his face contorting into a grotesque mask. 

"Evan!" He had forgotten about Evadne. He gathered all his self control, focusing on her as he squinted up. His teeth were bared like a wild animal's and his eyes had dilated so fully that all color but black and white seemed invisible in those orbs. The horse tried to rock itself back up before falling back down, too injured and exhausted to make it to its feet. This only caused the weight to reestablish itself back onto his injured left leg and he screamed out again. _No, no, focus on her... Focus on Evadne. Focus, focus... _His eyes opened again to look up at her in a pleading way. Her hair was in disarray around her head and she held her own grimace to mimic his, a look of detached pain that she felt for him. She also looked pale, afraid, almost frail. 

"Evadne!" He managed to cry out with the same speed of the hands that came from the fog, clamping down harshly beneath her chin. She yelled out first in surprise, and then in fury. The Schezar thrashed in the man's arms, a rather underdressed man. A strong breeze rushed through, swirling some of the fog and ash away, displacing it. Evan could now see a group of men, maybe only about ten, gathered around on foot, their mounts further behind them. The good thing was that they looked like petty thieves, bandits. A group of murderers, perhaps, but not a militarized one. The bad news was that they were armed. Evan was guessing that their horses were probably Asturian and stolen from the desolated city. He should have seen it coming... He should have known there would be groups vandalizing what remained of Palas. And now, the two of them were in deep shit. _Catylin would be _so_ disappointed..._

"What do we have here?" Asked the man holding Evadne's weakening form, though she was still blindly trying to kick and hit him. He sounded serious, much more so than the group of traders that she had run into before. This group even seemed to be much more sober... The demolished city seemed to have even ruined their high hopes for loot. There was a long pause as the man (seemingly the leader of the group) looked the two of them over. His hostility went down a notch before he spoke to his men again. "I'll bring the girl back to camp. Get the horse off of the boy. Put it out of its misery, for all I care. Bring the boy back to camp as well, unless there's any sign of him being too much trouble." With that, he began to drag Evadne along, who willingly came with him, figuring it was better to go along without a fight. This man didn't seem to have intentions too horrible for them, and he seemed almost gentle as he pulled her along by one arm as they moved farther from the north gate, further outside of the city. In fact, Evadne was so hopeful that they wouldn't harm them that she even imagined them treating any of Evan's wounds- 

"Aw, shit!" It was a cry from one of the smaller men. Evadne turned around suddenly, as well as her holder. She turned so quickly, in fact, that the position and movement twisted her arm back in his grasp rather painfully. What she saw made her blood run cold. The horse had already been killed and laid in her view of Evan, so she couldn't make him out except for his two legs, one straight and the other in a funny angle. But it wasn't what little she could see of him that made her skin pale even more. It was that the men were gathered around a skinny, mousy man, who was barely holding up a weapon, looking at it as if it were a venomous snake. It was Evan's weapon, the symbol of Zaibach evident, even through the fog and ash. "He's a Zaibach, Carm! A mother fucking bastard, that's what he is!" 

From there, things only got worse. 

There was the pause of silence and she could feel the scowl on her holder's face rather than see it. And then he growled out, barely above a whisper, "Kill him. Kill him for what he's done to Palas. And make it slow." His voice carried not because of its volume, but because of its emotion. 

"NO!!!!" Evadne's high-pitched scream was drowned out by the howl that escaped Evan's lips as the man above him plunged the sword down. The dead horse blocked her view of where the blade hit, but she could see a pool of blood quickly spreading beneath his body. His good leg curled in a convulsion, but the other one lay limp a crumpled, twitching a bit. His roars of pain weren't even human sounding any longer. Evadne felt all rational thoughts fade. There was blood and there was danger and there was an invitation for a fight. She rose to the challenge well.


	10. Chapter Nine

** The Aeon and the Star **

-GoldenEagle 

**Author's Notes:**Bah, yes, I know. Late, as usual. Again, I stress that Playing God is kind of at a stand still at the moment. Forgive. I was so hyped about this installment that I got it all written for you peeps (special thanks to Zibbelcoot for lying about how much she liked it j/k). Well, here it is. Hopefully the next part will be out soon. Oh, and go and start reading my Leon Pogroms. I plan on working on that more tonight, and I think people will like it once it gets started. (Plus, noone's reviewed it and I'm lonely... *snifflesniffle*) Oh, and go over to Zibbelcoot's site and watch her Van/Hitomi music video! It's NIFFTY!!! (which is the highest rating, in my book). I'd give you the link, but, I'm too lazy and stupid. Just go to it through her profile page. 

**Last time...** Evan and Evadne attacked, and Evan's obviously injured. How badly, though? **Chapter Nine**

Evadne had lost her mind. That was the simplest way of putting it, throwing her into some sort of insanity that was much too deep and dark to comprehend. There was the moment where hands were tightly holding her, that animal scream echoing from Evan, and then there came a mad blur of movements, of moments that were lost to Evadne Schezar's mind. When she woke from her stupor, she was bent over, her fingers pushed firmly against the ground, her legs bent, leaning forward. Her breath was leaving her in short gasps and the world seemed far too bright. The group of men seemed to be retreating, leaving in a flurry on their horses. She closed her eyes, steadying her breathing, trying to remember... Somehow she knew that when she looked around her, three of the men would be lying dead on the ground. Her fists hurt, her body was quivering in the wake of her adrenaline, and there was a very distinct, stabbing pain behind her eyes that throbbed powerfully. And when she opened her eyes, she found she was right about the three men and that her fists hurt because they were bruised and bleeding from a fight. As for her headache, it lessened even as everything else became horribly clear and her quivering turned into small shivering convulsions of fear. She was so taken by her shivering that it took her a while to stand up and back away from the body that had been lying beneath her. It was the leader that had been holding her, his neck turned at an awkward angle, his body sprawled out on the cold stones of the street. 

Again her eyes closed, more slowly this time, her pupils rolling back into her head as she let out a sick moan and then bowed over, vomiting. What had happened? Why couldn't she remember? A pulsing in her temples, a voice in her head- 

"No." 

Her voice, breaking through the quiet, breaking through the voice in her head, silencing it._ No more of this voice, of this insanity. You let it slip, that's all. It escaped for a moment. Never again. Ignore it. Never again._ Her own mental voice smoothed her, perhaps she had even said it out loud. She moaned. Again and again and again- no, not her. Those eyes opened again and she silenced herself, her panicked breathing. Yes, there. A wail, almost, a groan, a cry. 

"Evan?" Her voice was quiet, calm despite her own impressions and fears. She took a shaky step forward, towards the fallen horse. Another step and she paused, waiting for any sign that he had heard her. 

And it came, quietly, like the sound of a breeze through the top of the trees. "Eva-va... Vadne..." Her name was broken but clear and she sprinted the rest of the way to where she could see his legs, his left leg stirring as if on its own accord, jerking against the blood soaked soil. 

"Evan!" Her voice was louder this time, startling even her. She walked the last few feet to where she could see him and she froze. He was bleeding. Alive, yes, but bleeding horribly from... From where? Her eyes narrowed as she searched for where the crimson liquid was coming. So, so, so much blood. That pain started growing behind her eyes again and her vision blurred a bit. She had to be strong. Remind herself that she was strong. She was a Schezar. She _had _to be strong. 

She leant over him, half falling on her knees as she looked him over. His eyes were closed and the crimson pool had reached up to his hair, clinging to it. His jaw was very tense, a bit of blood leaking from his mouth. A jolt of panic whipped through Evadne. "Evan, where were you hit? Where?" Despite her overwhelming awareness that she was shaking and that a horrible pain was still building behind her sight, almost blinding her, she somehow kept her voice clean and calm. 

His hand reached out, grasped her arm sharply. She started slightly, surprised by the sudden touch. "Eva-vadne..." He moaned loudly. "Oh, gods... gods... They hit my leg... Oooh, no, no, no. Not my legs, Evadne. Not my legs... I'd rather die without my legs... the fight... Catylin..." His voice seemed to die out on him. Evadne felt a cold ball settle in her stomach as she reached out her hand and touched his forehead gently. She then looked down to his leg... The right leg, she could see now. And beyond the blood, she could see it was almost completely severed. It made her want to cry out, want to double over with the sick waves washing through her system. She did neither. She sat straight. She refused to cry. 

"Evan, listen to me. You've lost a lot of blood. I've got to get you out of here." 

"No, no, no, no... Leave me. Please, Evadne. Leave me." His eyes opened then and focused on her. His look of desperate bitterness was wiped out immediately as he gazed up at her, focused on her eyes. The stare was so intense that Evadne could feel a blush rise in her pale cheeks and she lowered her head. The pain behind her eyes increased and she thought she may just rip out those blue green orbs for good. 

"Quit looking at me like that." She whispered. It was deeply unsettling her. The pangs increased. 

He was still staring at her when she glanced up shyly. But there was some strange fear in his eyes now. "Your eyes..." He muttered. His gaze started to falter, his eyes trying to close without his permission. "Blood and water..." and he was gone. 

******************* 

"Mumma! Someone's coming!" A petite yet willowy figure stood at the edge of the small clearing, her form straight and stiff as she watched the silhouette of two riders on one horse come slowly through a narrow forest trail to what was the beginnings of their camp. Several people heeded her cry and came running, weary and stumbling, dull and blood covered swords in their hands. It was about then that the figures entered through into the opening. The people who had come running were suddenly at attention. On the horse sat a boy, slumped over, his face deathly pale. Small streams of blood ran down the horse's flanks and sides. It also gave off a sour smell. He was unconscious, but suddenly seemed to stir. No, not him, but a hunched figure behind him which slid from the horse to the ground tiredly before pulling the boy off with her. The guards started to pull forward, ready to ask questions and make assumptions, but the mousy haired girl who had first called out moved forward first, staring intently at the tall girl before her. The girl with pale skin (grey with cold and weariness at the moment, actually) and silver hair. 

"Evadne?" The girl piped up, barely recognizing her friend in her odd attire and muffed up form. 

The girl gazed at her tiredly, a familiar pale blue/green gaze meeting the brown eyes of the other girl. A look of relief flowed over Evadne's features as she recognized the figure, however underdressed she was compared to the dress she had worn only days before. "Care, you must help me." _I mustn't cry. Not now._

*********************** 

He was cursing at her, screaming that he hated her. Sobbing and sobbing and screaming and cursing. Evadne acted as if she didn't notice his words as he gripped her hand tightly, surely coming close to breaking those bones, even as he yelled at her that he despised her, yelled at her that she should have killed him. Her gaze was calm, comforting. She continually repeated above his screams, "It's all right. It'll be over soon." He couldn't hear her. The repetitiveness of the words were for her comfort alone. She refused to cry. 

And when it was all over, when Evan had long ago passed out from the pain and the humiliation of the amputation, Evadne left the tent. The Asturian refugees threw cautious glances at the opening she had just come from, all a result from hearing those screams. She walked away, ignoring even Care when she called out to her. She walked until she was back in the forest, where it wasn't considered safe to wander, not after such a horrible act in the capital, Palas. There she stopped, looked up to the clouds... 

And she cried. 

************************ 

"Evan?" Evadne's voice was quiet, her eyes dark and without their usual light. She ran long fingers across his cool forehead. He opened his eyes slowly, looking up at her. Such despair he carried, tears coming so fast that she wasn't sure quite when they really started. She could only count them, turning them into numbers instead of acknowledging what they really stood for. The soldier was broken. He closed his eyes before he began to talk. 

"Please..." He croaked. "Please tell me it was all a nightmare. Tell me that I still have them both, that I'll walk again, that they didn't-" 

"Evan..." her voice was pleading, pathetically pained. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Look, you can still go on. Maybe not in the army, but there are plenty of jobs, even for those who've..." She hesitated, choked on her words. "Who have lost a limb." 

He let out a loud cry but brought his hand to his lips. "I shouldn't cry... Cat would be so disappointed... But you don't understand. Without my position in the army, I can't marry her. I can't. And why would she want me? A cripple-" 

Evadne's eyes had narrowed on him. "If she loves you, she'll stay with you, no matter what. But what are you talking about with the whole 'can't marry her'?" 

He opened his eyes again, staring at her and yet beyond her at the same time. "The Palas Treaty..." 

Evadne's heart sank. She hadn't thought of the Treaty in years. And there were so many more important things at the time when she had learned of it than what was before her. Yet it was all too painfully clear. The Palas Treaty was a treaty set forth to punish and hinder Zaibach after the war. There were all sorts of points to it, like not bringing any military into the Southern borders of Zaibach, and several payments of money to Asturia, Freid, and Fanalia to pay for war damages. It was a rather unfair treaty, but now it seemed even more so. Because one of the points spoke of the memberships of the Zaibachs and the rest of the Gaean countries. No one could marry a Zaibach unless they were already one, and the only way an Asturian or Freidan or Fanalian could become part of Zaibach was if they joined a branch of the Zaibach government. Hence, Evan could not marry his beloved Cat unless he joined the army, which was impossible now. The world spun around Evadne. All faith in the phrase "good conquers all" seemed to dim and battle within her. 

Evan was floating off again, forgetting himself. "I don't want to live without her, Evadne. I can't..." He whispered. She looked down on him a few seconds longer before she stood and began to leave. She paused at the doorway and looked back. Evan was asleep. "I'll think of something." She whispered. 

********************** 

"What are you doing?! Oh, gods, oh, gods-" 

"Shh, Care!" A girl's voice behind a boy's mask. 

"What have you done to your hair?" It came out as a moan from the petite and willowy girl. 

"I cut it." 

"What? Why?" 

A pleading voice. "You mustn't tell anyone about this, Care. Not even after I'm gone." 

"Why?" The same question, a scared voice. 

"You are my friend, Care. Please, just trust me. It's all for good." 

"But the sword... And, Evadne, you look like a _boy_." 

A weak grin in the dim light that shone through the tent. "Good." 

************************ 

_Evan, _

By the time you've gotten this letter, I'll be gone. Don't bother looking for your sword or your Privileged uniform. You won't find them. I know you'll be furious with me, but please, take this as the gift it is. If I remember right, six months in the Zaibach army and you'll be a part of their little citizenship. Catylon (I probably misspelled her name, but you must allow me my mistakes) will be with you soon enough. Be happy. I won't fail you. A Schezar always keeps her word. 

Loyally, 

Evadne Schezar 

P.S. I'll write. If you return the letters, make sure to address them to Evan Corsin. We don't want anyone thinking I'm not who I'm claiming to be, eh? 


End file.
